Tale of Scars: A Warriors Fanfic
by Rowanistic
Summary: As a young kit, Duskpaw grew up with loving parents and in a strong clan, Boneclan. They were led by a strong cat with ambitions and ideals, and a history of rivalry between them and Soulclan has kept tensions high. After the death of his father under a full moon battle, Duskpaw is mentored by the menacing ruler of Boneclan, and begins his climb to the top of the ranks.
1. Allegiances

ALLEGIANCES

BONECLAN

**Leader - **Blackstar; A fully black Persian tom with yellow eyes and one white paw, as well as cheeks and body scars.

**Deputy - **Rotfoot; A bulky muddy brown tom with a twisted left foot with its claws permanently unsheathed and yellow eyes.

**Medicine cat -** Thistlebranch; Sandy and brown splotched cat with thick, bushy fur and golden eyes.

**Warriors - **

Marshstomp; A dark grey pelted tom with black tabby stripes and a white underbelly & neck, and amber eyes.

Frogleap; A white tom with dark grey ears and paws, with powerful hind legs and green eyes.

Stoneclaw; A sleet gray tom with darker socks, tail, stripe going down his back, white speckling on his face, and denim blue eyes as well as shoulder scars and nicks taken out of his ears.

Rattongue; A brown, lanky tom with muscular shoulders and a sharp tongue, and bright yellow eyes.

Frostblaze; Light grey molly with a darker grey stripe running down her back and light blue eyes.

Lichenclaw; A white and gray-socked molly with black V shapes under her eyes, a stripe that runs from her nose to her tail, and a pair of mossy orbs.

Berrybreeze; A sandy colored tom with white underbelly and a darker marbling to his pelt and yellow eyes.

Kinkfur; A ginger tom with uncontrollable hair like a thistle bush and green eyes.

**Apprentices - **

Duskpaw; Large black tom with a white underbelly, paws, and underside of his tail, and amber eyes.. (Mentor is Blackstar)

Whitepaw; Petite white molly with a black tail tip, black ears, black chin, stripe running from her nose to her back, paws, and black dots under her pale blue eyes. (Mentor is Frostblaze)

Tawnypaw; Tortie molly with white belly fur and paws, and brown eyes. (Mentor is Berrybreeze)

Bushpaw; Brown tom with fluffy fur that often catches debris and green eyes. (Mentor is Kinkfur)

Shadepaw; Marbled charcoal black bengal with sleek fur and white specks on her face and back and bright green eyes. (Mentor is Stoneclaw)

**Queens -**

Shadowsong (mate of Stoneclaw); Deep black molly with a lighter underbelly and indigo eyes.

Barkbelly (Mate of Kinkfur); Chocolate brown british shorthair molly with a slightly darker marbling and white paws and underbelly, along with golden eyes.

**Kits -**

Flamekit (Kit of Shadowsong); Calico molly with brown eyes and spiky fur.

Pepperkit (Kit of Shadowsong); Black and white speckled tom with one folded ear and icy blue eyes.

Mothkit (Kit of Barkbelly); Cream and brown tabby british shorthair molly with yellow eyes.

Daisykit (Kit of Barkbelly); Black and white dappled british shorthair molly with one brown eye and one green eye.

**Elders - **

Lizardthroat; Sandy brown tom with a brown throat and stomach and black tabby stripes.

Fawnstep; Light brown molly with white dots on her back and face.

Larkflight; Dark gray molly with black ears, a black tail, and black tabby stripes running down her back, and deep emerald eyes.

DARK FOREST CATS

Bonestar (founder of Boneclan); Large, muscular white tom with a fully black tail and black socks, and yellow eyes, along with a large scar that went across his face and between his eyes and down the left side of his neck.

Snakestar (leader of Boneclan); Slender-bodied tom with muddy brown fur and mustard eyes.

Lotussong (Medicine cat when Snakestar reigned); Soft spoken fluffy lilac point with all her teeth rotted out from a gum disease.

Rocktooth (deputy); Dark gray bulky tom with brown eyes and a scar over his lip revealing a canine.

Valiant (Rogue who lived with Boneclan); Black tom with an X shaped scar on his chest, a white chin, and deep blue eyes.

Moonwillow (Warrior of Boneclan); Silver tabby with black paws and a black tail tip, and scratches over her eyes.

Ravenstrike (Warrior of Boneclan); black

tom with ginger-tabby patches and green eyes.

Goldendapple (Medicine cat of Boneclan); Golden tabby molly with soft amber eyes and white paw-tips.

SILVERPELT CATS

Soulstar (founder of Soulclan); White lightly marbled bengal tom with piercing sky blue eyes.

Cloudstar (Soulclan Leader); Fluffy white persian tom with deep ocean-blue eyes.

Rainwhisker (Soulclan medicine cat); Russian blue tom with large whiskers and gray-blue eyes.

Foggystep (Soulclan warrior); Light gray molly with white cloud-like splotches on her pelt and mossy eyes.

Fernpaw (Soulclan warrior); Calico molly with pale yellow eyes and claw marks all over her body.

Smallwish (Soulclan medicine cat); Small white tom with black patches and denim eyes.

Mistyrunner (Soulclan warrior); Dark grey tabby molly with yellow eyes and a white belly and tail tip.

Doveheart (Soulclan warrior); Black molly with a white heart-shaped mark on her chest and hazel eyes.

Palehawk (Soulclan warrior); Siamese tom with baby blue eyes and a missing canine tooth.

SOULCLAN

**Leader **\- Flowerstar; Slender white long furred molly with orange tabby splotches and concerned yellow eyes.

**Deputy **\- Gingerroot; Tough ginger tabby tom with white paws and tail tip and emerald green eyes.

**Medicine cat** \- Cloudsong; Gray tom with a thick fluffy pelt splotched with white.

**Warriors** -

Lilytuft; Fluffy grey and white snowshoe molly with soft blue-lavender eyes.

Blueclaw; Russian blue tom with one white paw, a white tail tip, and ocean blue eyes.

Streamsplash; white molly with grey spots and grey-blue eyes.

Littleear; Black tom with patches of white and deep pine green eyes with small, rounded ears.

Toadface; Brown flat-faced tom with darker socks, ears, and tail, along with hazel eyes.

Spottedsnow; Tonkinese white molly with light grey freckling on her face and grey siamese points, and aqua eyes.

Jaggedjaw; Dark silver tom with black tabby stripes, and orange eyes.

**Apprentices** -

Oakpaw; Brown tom with white toes, white chin, and darker brown marbling to his pelt with emerald green eyes. (Mentor is Streamsplash)

Wishpaw; White molly with dichroic blue and amber eyes. (Mentor is Flowerstar)

Cherrypaw; Light rosy-brown marbled bengal molly with a white underbelly and hazel eyes. (Mentor is Gingerroot)

**Queens** -

Birchcloud (Mate of Blueclaw); White molly with light brown patches and soft yellow eyes.

Tumblewhisper (Mate of Jaggedpelt); Dark grey molly with amber eyes.

**Kits** -

Tinykit (Kit of Birchcloud); Dark blue-grey tom with a white tail tip and a white patch on his chest and over his left eye, and soft blue eyes.

Blossomkit (Kit of Birchcloud); Soft brown molly with a white spot on the right side of her face and rosy eyes.

Geodekit (Kit of Birchcloud); Dark grey tabby tom with shiny blue eyes and dark grey socks, with a white spot over his eye.

Sharpkit (Kit of Tumblewhisper); Grey tom with a white underbelly, socks, and tail with darker stripes on it and black facial markings with amber eyes.

Stormkit (Kit of Tumblewhisper); Light grey tabby with a white chin, chest, belly, and tail, as well as denim blue eyes.

**Elders** -

Grasssong; Light brown and white dappled molly with grassy-green eyes.

Antlerbite; Dark brown tom with his right eye and ear missing, and a crippled left back leg from being trampled by a deer, with muddy amber eyes and a darker patch of fur at the base of his tail.


	2. Prologue

PROLOGUE

Duskkit was in his nest, sitting next to his mother and just a little ways from her and his sibling. He looked forlorn, gazing directly into the side of the dugout nursery and his fluffy tail flicking back and forth. Whitekit stirred next to him, kicking out a paw and hitting Duskkits side.

"Shove off." Duskkit hissed, looking around and scowling with his amber eyes.

"I didn't do anything!" Whitekit protested, her blue eyes staring indignantly at her brother.

"You _kicked_ me, mouse-brain." He grumbled, turning his head back around to look at the wall of the hollow once more.

"Momma, Duskkit is being mean again!" Whitekit whined, pawing at her mother's side to stir her.

"Duskkit, please be nice to your sister." Lichenclaw mewed, looking sharply over to Duskkit with a warning look flashing in her moss-colored eyes.

Duskkit made no response and just continued to sit there, wondering where his dad was right now. He was probably out battling, like the strong, amazing cat his dad was! Speaking of his dad, a dark brown face, covered in small scars left from battles, with yellow eyes poked in, gazing at the kits within. He padded forward and nuzzled Lichenclaw's cheek, purring as he did so through a maw-full of vole.

"I got you your favorite, Lichenclaw." He said, voice raspy as he dropped the vole at his mates paws, yet still retaining a gentle and caring tone.

"Thank you, my dear." The queen purred, returning the nuzzle to Rattongue, her mate, and taking a gentle bite out of the vole.

"Dad! Did you beat up anyone today?!" Duskkit squeaked, turning around and puffing his pelt out big to look strong as he trotted up to his dad and put his paws around his leg like a hug.

"Hey big fella. You know your old man's always kicking flanks left and right." He licked the top of his head affectionately, making his fur stick out in random directions. Duskkits eyes were bright with joy as he sat up big and strong, like his dad. _One day, I'm going to be just like him! _Duskkit beamed and padded over to his sister, puffing his white painted chest out as he huffed. He took a paw and pushed Whitekits side, a victorious look on his face.

"Revenge!" He declared, pouncing then onto the fallen Whitekit much to his sisters despair. She made a squeak, writhing under her bigger siblings weight.

"Momma! Momma!" She cried out, kicking her hind legs to try and escape. Lichenclaw snorted and backed up from her vole, picking up Duskkit by the scruff and dragging him to her chest.

"Hey! No fair!" He protested, his fluffy tail flopping around with irritation as his mother began rapidly licking his head to right the fur his father ruffled up on his head.

"All's fair in love and war, my kit. We can't be fighting our own clanmates, especially when they protest." Lichenclaw chastised, kindly gazing to her young kit. Duskkit looked up to his mother with a sour expression but ultimately accepted it, grumbling and and nuzzling into his mothers chest fur despite his annoyance with her interference. Whitekit soon approached, crouching next to the form of Duskkit wrapped within their mothers forelegs. She huffed, slouching to the side of Lichenclaws legs and nuzzling into them. Tiredness swept over her and Duskkit felt the call of unconsciousness, to which he gladly fell into as he was surrounded by the scent of his mother. Rattongue leaned over and licked the top of Whitekits head and Duskkits, then affectionately licking Lichenclaws muzzle.

"Eat the rest of your vole, love." he mewed, his eyes regarding her as if she was a precious gem in a barren wasteland, sparkling with admiration. Lichenclaw looked towards him with the same regard, her purr rumbling deep and in the chests of her kits, helping to lull them further into unconsciousness. She nuzzled the side of his face and blinked slowly and sultry, pulling away and fluttering her eyes towards him, the look in her eyes one that could strike down a man weaker than Rattongue; but the toms eyes matched the passion of his mates blazing mossy gaze, and he touched noses with her before backing out of the den, to his mates visible disappointment.

"I'm sorry, love. You know how Blackstar is… we can never rest." he mewed, a darker look flashing across his gaze. He huffed and gave a final lick to Lichenclaw before he exited, leaving a hollow place where he once was. Lichenclaw frowned and sucked in a deep breath, looking down to her two kits caught in the lull of sleep, and she rested her head just next to the small dark ball of fur that was Duskkit wrapped up in her paws, and she fluttered her eyes shut as she allowed unconsciousness to take her as well...

Duskpaw padded alongside his father, his messily-fluffed tail held up tall and proud. In his chest, a bubbling excitement formed. The sun was high in the sky, and the cool breeze of the northern climate penetrated into his thick pelt and caused a shiver to run up his spine. He shot a glance up to Rattongue, meeting his yellow eyes. Rattongue blinked down at his son with reassurance, then staring straight forward and planting his pawstep precisely as they approached the large ring of boulders that surrounded a sparse clearing, their shadows stretching far behind them and the trees swaying in a chaotic unison as the wind grew stronger with every icy gust. Duskpaw took a seat by the base of a boulder that was just around twice his height, which wasn't too big but not necessarily small. His father sat besides him, his gaze seemingly locked onto the form of their leader. Blackstar entered the clearing, his presence making the atmosphere charged with a dangerous energy. His thick, black, and scarred up pelt was covered with cobwebs and stuck out randomly in multiple directions, and his tail lashed around in excitement. Duskpaw couldn't help but feel an intense sense of admiration towards this cat; who knows how many lives have been taken from the claws of that cat. How many lives were ruined and torn to shred… it made his paws itch with a feeling he couldn't quite put a name to, and visions of cats locked in a battle of tooth and claw trickled into his mind. He looked over to his father once more, before whipping his gaze back to Blackstar as his ragged, booming voice began echoing into the clearing.

"Boneclan! Today, we gather around in the battle clearing to witness an extravagant event! Today, anyone who thinks they can run this place better than I-" His dark amber eyes looked across every cat, but taking special care to make eye contact with Rattongue. Duskpaw gazed up to his father, noticing that Blackstar staring directly at him. His father's face curled up into an angry snarl, his pupils turning into slits and his eyes radiating a blazing anger.

"-will clash with me, using teeth and claws, until the light drains from the others eyes and they leave the plain of existence. The Dark Forest itself will suck the lives away from the leader that falls, and the life of the warrior who challenges will be banished to the outskirts of the Dark Forest, filled with shame and on the run. Now… Which one of you wants to rule? Who thinks they deserve this more than me?!" He bellowed out angrily, bearing his teeth and snarling as he looked around. Again, his eyes were then drawn to Duskpaws own father, and the surprise on his face was apparent when he heard _his_ father roar a response.

"Blackstar! I, Rattongue, Challenge you!" Rattongue declared, standing up and muscles rippling as he braced himself against his primal urge to just jump into battle right then and there. He wanted to rip this cat apart… ruin him, ruin his image... Make the clan great once more, not the murderous, unlawful killing machines they are now. Right now… they were mercenaries, murdering any who were deemed weak or useless. Duskpaw's eyes were filled with something he forgot he could feel- fear. Primal, instinctual fear that surged through his body. His dad; his _dad_ was going to fight Blackstar. The emotions in his body swirled in a confusing, delirious way, and he watched on with look of surprise as his father began padding up to the larger, black cat. He felt a new presence walk to him, and he looked next to him to see the small form of his sister, Whitepaw, her blue eyes sparkling with worry.

"Is… Is Dad really gonna… gonna fight Blackstar…?" She mewed, voice trembling and paws following in suit as she crouched down besides her brother, pressing into his flank with a shiver. "Will… Will he win?" She mewed, looking behind her to the larger form of their mother, Lichenclaw, and tears pricking at the corner of her eyes.

"Pray, my child. That is all we can do; pray for the best to happen." She said, her voice blank and toneless. The emotions in her eyes were dull and empty, and all previous joy and love had been sucked away as she watched on with a stoic, icy stillness, seeing her beloved mate approached Blackstar. A foreign yet familiar feeling of uneasiness swallowed up the clearing, and the snarls of the two opposing toms were like lightning striking into Duskpaw's ears and sending him into a frightened state, for just a second if not longer.

"Rotfoot, Come! Be the referee of sorts." Blackstar commanded, looking over to the muddy tom, who made his way over despite the curled up foot on his right foreleg. He scrambled up onto a small, flatter boulder in the middle of the clearing, and gazed dully over to Rattongue.

"May the forces of The Dark Forest bless you. Goto the opposing side, when I say, you two will charge at one another and the battle will begin." He mewed, sitting down and twitching his tail with agitation behind him as he observed the two toms. Blackstar was bulkier, the advantage of size and years of experience were on the leaders side. Rattongue was a sly tom, quick on his feet and confusing to watch. His bite was a sharp one too, but would it be sharp enough to get through Blackstar? Rattongue padded across to the opposite side of the clearing. He turned on a dime and faced the other, who had done the same and went to their respected side. Rattongue bared his fangs, spit flying at the power in it as he unsheathed his claws and raked the ground with them, tearing out what little grass was beneath his paws in the clearing. Blackstar, several tail-lengths away, was calmly staring down Rattongue, his eyes cold and blazing with a terrifying passion. Blackstar licked his chops, his gaze never leaving his opponent. There was even a hint of a smile upon his ragged face. Rotfoot looked to each of them, and nodded. Duskpaw crouched down and slightly trembled on his paws, emotions surging through his body and causing him to feel overwhelmed. He didn't like this; it was too much emotion. Too much feeling… He despised it. He opened his previously squeezed shut eyes and looked to the scene, a stone settling in his stomach as Blackstar and Rattongue announced their readiness. The deputy bellowed those fateful words, and Duskpaw pressed his ears to his skull. He felt nauseous.

"If you are both ready… Let the battle begin!" Rotfoot yowled, closing his eyes and giving a silent prayer as the cats began dashing to one another. Blackstar started slowly, picking up speed as he approached the center. Rattongue started with a tremendous burst of speed, launching off of his hind legs and kicking up sand as he quickly came upon the larger form. They both screeched in unison, and Rattongue's claws raked into Blackstars shoulders. Blackstar held his ground as the running form of Rattongue flung into him, and claws dug their way into the flesh on his shoulders. Soon his maw found its mark on the ear of Rattongue, and he drew his forelegs up to dig his claws into the smaller opponent. Blood trickled down Rattongues face as his ear was torn by Blackstars teeth, the pain searing and causing a fresh wave of hatred and anger flood over him. He drew himself closer to Blackstar and pushed his back legs into the bigger toms stomach, raking the thick fur and just barely penetrating to the soft belly flesh of the leader. Blackstar hissed in pain, and began wildly thrashing his upper body to disorient and cause his opponent to be light headed, and perhaps throw him off. Rattongue let his grip on

Blackstar loosen, and he landed squarely on his paws as Blackstars thrashing caused him to fly out of the grapple. He stood his ground, hissing and spitting angrily as he stood close to Blackstar. Blackstar uttered a low growl, and he smacked Rattongue in the face with unsheathed claws, ripping four long and deep wounds into his face and causing blood to splatter onto the clearing. Blackstar laughed, deeply and with malice dripping off of the sound like venom on a rattlesnake's fangs. Rattongue screeched, loud and piercing, and threw himself at Blackstar with a blind rage. _A mistake_.

Blackstar was prepared, and as Rattongue launched himself towards the leader, Blackstars jaws caught the side of his throat, teeth just barely missing the vital tubes protected within the throat. He bit down, and hard, and threw Rattongue to the side, flinging him and ripping lesions into the side of his neck as he was ripped from Blackstars teeth by the force of the throw. He hit the ground with a thud, the air being violently pushed out of his lungs. He sucked in the air briskly and painfully, his head feeling light after connecting with the ground with such ferocious much force. He desperately writhed around, trying to get up onto his legs, but his body failing him when his mind was fully intent to get up and tear that mange-pelt of a leader to shreds. Blackstar padded over, taking a paw and pressing down onto Rattongues rib cage and curling his claws into his skin. Rattongue moaned in pain, blood spilling from his neck and his face. He spat, a wad of spit hitting Blackstar in the face, and Rattongues claws connecting with the side of Blackstars face. Blackstar let out an angry yowl, and his jaws went down to meet their true mark- Rattongues jugular.

The leader's teeth were wrapped around his neck, clamping down onto it with immense pressure. A sickly crunch could be heard, and a wet ripping sound followed as his throat was torn out. Blackstar quickly spat out the chunk of flesh that remained between his teeth, and he looked down to Rattongue. The lanky brown tom let out a harsh, strained wheeze, and began writhing around in agony as blood began bubbling out with the same rhythm of his final heartbeats and out of the back of his mouth, now agape in a permanent howl of suffering. Soon, his twitching body became still, except for the continuous ebbing of a crimson river from his throat wound. Rattongues eyes were looking behind him, at the form of a black and white six month old kitten, his eyes wide as saucers as he watched the final hints of life wash away from his father's pale yellow eyes. His paws gently swayed one last time in the air, giving a final struggle as all signs of life were left from his corpse. He was gone.

Duskpaws eyes were wide, and a red haze flooded his vision as he watched the life slip away from his father's yellow eyes. Blood was pooled around his fathers no longer moving body, and he began taking shaky steps backwards, his rump hitting his mother's leg. He looked up to her, and tears were freely flowing down Lichenclaw's face. She trembled, and Duskpaw couldn't stop staring at her. He had just turned six months old. He's barely left the camp. Now, he's watched his father die.

"M-mom…?" Whitepaw mewed softly, trembling underneath her mother's legs and breaking the almost deafening silence permeating the clearing. Lichenclaw didn't even glance at her kits. Lichenclaw's mouth opened, slowly at first, and then she let out a horrific screech, its sound ringing through the clearing and making every cat move as she pushed her way through the crowd and pelted her way over to the lifeless body of her lover. She threw herself over his bloodied corpse, Blackstar standing there and watching her with an expression of disgust. Lichenclaw clutched Rattongues body with her paws, rubbing her face into his shoulder fur and taking in his scent for the final time. She wept so hard her body was wracked with intense trembles, all while her mates blood continued to soak into her gray and white fur, leaving an ugly crimson stain. Blackstar continued to stare, a dark, blank expression on his face as his eyes stared at a mother grieving the loss of her mate. He snorted at the sight, turning his gaze over to the two trembling kits Lichenclaw left behind. He began padding over towards them, and Duskpaw couldn't help but take a step back. He was terrified. His sister was in a similar state, eyes filled with tears. She shakily sobbed, her eyes locked on her mother clutching the body of her father. Blackstar came upon them, gazing down at the small, trembling forms.

"Duskpaw. You will now be my apprentice." Blackstar mewed, tone as blank and dark as his expression. He turned around to address the rest of the clan, his paws still covered with fresh blood and dirt.

"Boneclan! We are done here, unless someone else dares to challenge me…?" Blackstar mewed, gazing around to the silent crowd of cats. No one uttered a single noise. Only the chirps of birds in the forest and the water from the Sunset lake splashing in the distance. It was almost peaceful, if not for dead body in the clearing. "Someone go take care of Rattongue's corpse. The rest, follow me to camp!" Blackstar barked in order, padding over towards the camp, leaving small bloody paw prints in his wake.

Duskpaw watched as their leader walked off, his father's blood still pumping from his corpse as he casually meanders to camp. He hardly even registered the words Blackstar spoke to him, let alone the fact that his father's killer was his mentor now. There was a buzzing sound thumping in his eardrums, and he began taking pawsteps towards his parents. Every step he took was like walking through mud. His vision was becoming less clear the closer he got, and the sounds of his mother sobbing intensified the ringing in his ears. He felt even more sick, his stomach twisting and turning with disgust at the sight of his father. His father, who could defeat anyone in battle, who would always come home to give mom a kiss on the head and wish him and his sister a good rest, he was gone now. Taken away. Stolen. Or did he choose to leave? Why did he challenge Blackstar? Did he know he was gonna die?

"M-momma." Duskpaw mewed, taking a gulp as his paw stepped in the sticky blood pool. "Momma. He's dead." He mewed softly, eyes squinting in a grimace as his mother continued grasping his body. Duskpaw walked up more, the smell of blood overwhelming his senses, and his mind going blank. He couldn't process it. He just… couldn't. "Momma, stop…" Duskpaw pleaded, nudging his mother's shoulder to try and ease her off of Rattongue's corpse.

"N-no… No…" Lichenclaw rasped, her sobs muffling any words she tried to speak. "He cant…" She rubbed her face into his fur once more, another violent sob taking her voice.

"Mom, we have… we have to bury him." Duskpaw mewed, gulping at the thought. Whitepaw began approaching behind him, refusing to get too close to the pool of blood that surrounded her father's corpse.

"Is he…" Whitepaw starts, blue eyes wide and filled with tears.

"He's dead, Whitepaw." Duskpaw mews blankly, still staring at their sobbing mother. Whitepaw looks to him and her face contorts into one of sorrow, and she chokes out a sob as she crouches down away from them. Duskpaw looks over to his mom again and pushes her, a little more firm this time.

"Mom. he's DEAD! Stop!" Duskpaw yelled, clenching his teeth and pushing Lichenclaw away from Rattongue, and tears freely falling from his glistening amber eyes. "We have to bury him!" Lichenclaw was literally thrown out of her grief-stricken stupor, and she looked to her son with a shaken expression.

"I- I'm sorry…. You're right." She mews, shakily getting up and standing over her mates body. "As… as his family, we- we must bury him." she choked out, voice hoarse from crying and gray-white pelt stained with blood. "Duskpaw, Whitepaw… dig a hole by the base of the Great Rock for your father-" She was cut off as another sob took over her body, and she grabbed Rattongue's scruff.

Duskpaw turned and mechanically walked over to the base of the Great Rock, pushing his paws to break up the hard surface of the ground and beginning to dig a hole. His vision was blurred with tears, but he continued to dig a cat-sized hole for his father to take a final rest in. Whitepaw padded over a little after him, helping scoop dirt out of the hole and piling it besides the hole. After awhile, they created a deep enough indent in the earth, and Lichenclaw began dragging Rattongue's bloody corpse from the middle of the clearing and to the hole her children had dug. Duskpaw trotted over to help, using his shoulders to lift his father's body and help Lichenclaw lower him into the grave. Whitepaw starred as he was dropped into the grave, jumping at the thud he made as he landed. She, along with Lichenclaw and her brother, began scooping dirt over Rattongue. It absolutely broke everyone's heart, and unknown to them, another small apprentice was watching the mourning family with her brown eyes, behind a dead tree off to the side of the clearing. She blinked, giving her prayers that the family recovers from this tragedy. In the distance, the cawing of a crow can be heard, and the icy wind blew through the trees, on this crisp day in Leaf-fall.


	3. Chapter one

CHAPTER 1

'_Same Old Faces'_

Duskpaw awoke in a dark, damp place, that filled his nostrils with the smell of rot. He sprang to his feet, claws unsheathed and sinking into the rotting leaf litter below his paws. He looked down, and realized he was _actually_ sinking down in the rotting leaves. He tried thrash his legs around, but they were firmly stuck, and the more he tried to pry his legs out from the moldy grasp the floor had on him, the deeper he sank into it, until it was almost at his elbows. Panic starts setting in, and he looks around frantically, nothing but looming dead trees covered in rotting moss and plant matter in the distance.

"H-help! Someone!" Duskpaw yowled desperately, hoping someone might hear him. "Please! Help!" A sound came from the forest beyond where Duskpaw was stuck, and the sinking tom was struck with a small glimmer of hope.

"Help! I'm over here! Please!" Duskpaw pleaded, yowling into the forest as he continued being swallowed up by the rotting plant matter. The smell of rot and mold was overwhelming his senses, and his legs were almost completely submerged by now. He desperately looked for any sign that someone was approaching, someone coming to his rescue. His eyes were finally drawn to movement, and a pair of yellow eyes were peering at him from the forest.

A large tom, all white and covered in many scars, one distinctly going from his neck, around to his shoulder, and down his back, and black socks on his paws and a black tail tip. The tom approached the spot where Duskpaw stands sinking in the rotting leaf litter. He easily walked over, right in front of the struggling apprentice.

"H-Help! What are you doing-?" He yowled, struggling more now. "Help me! Please!" He begged, tears now running down his eyes. The tom in front of him suddenly began changing shape, color going more to a dark brown, but his eyes remaining the same. His ears grew larger and his snout more pointed, and Duskpaw was horrified to be staring at the form of his father. The silhouette was even featuring a deep, ripped out windpipe and jugular. Duskpaw stared up at the form of his father, tears still streaming from his eyes and the blood from his father's wound pumping out, as if it was a freshly made wound. Duskpaw felt the rotten floor cover up his back, and he knew he was done for. He stared in the eyes on his father, before sinking fully into the rotting plant matter, his eyes being covered and his vision becoming nothing but darkness. Duskpaw's body felt cold, and everything around him was dark. Slowly, splatters of blood began splashing across his vision, and a low humming noise was audible. As the blood splashes cover more and more of his vision, the humming becomes louder and louder until it's a deafening, piercing noise in his ears, and his vision is covered in red blood. Something that sounds like the crack of a branch echo in his mind, and he opens his eyes to see the walls of the apprentices den.

Duskpaw awoke suddenly with a jump, his head hitting the top of the apprentices den and causing a small dusting of dirt to fall on the still sleeping cats. Another cat awoke with him, his sister Whitepaw, who looked over to him with concerned blue eyes.

"Duskpaw; are you alright?" She mewed, sitting down and shaking the light dusting of dirt off of her pelt.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Duskpaw groaned, laying back down and shaking his head to try and disperse the dull pain from the top of his head. "Just a dream." He got up and stretched out his paws, kneading the mossy nest under him. He looked over to Whitepaw again before leaving the den, and padding out into the camp.

Duskpaw was immediately greeted by a cold breeze slapping into his face, causing him to grimace against it before padding further out into the camp. He looked around and didn't spot Blackstar, so he peered around for other apprentices. On the side of camp near the entrance of the canyon space, Bushpaw and Tawnypaw were play fighting. He padded over to them, slowly at first, a bit wary of socializing. Tawnypaw spotted him approaching and smiled, before a familiar face had barged its way in, sliding down the slope into canyon camp accompanied by Frogleap and Marshstomp. Blackstar immediately spotted Duskpaw, pausing for a moment then walking over to the tree stump and jumping up onto it.

"Rotfoot! I've returned from my border patrol with Frogleap and Marshstomp. I want you to organize two hunting patrols, you leading one and another warrior leading another. I'm going to take my apprentice out for training." Blackstar announced, his voice raspy and authoritative. Rotfoot nodded to his leader, and looked to the other warriors in camp, calling some names to gather patrols. Duskpaw watched with interest, watching how the clan functioned and kept everything orderly and safe. Blackstar then jumped down and came behind him, causing Duskpaw to turn around with a small jump. He looked up to his mentor and blinked, gulping down his fears and wiping his face of emotions, like he was supposed to. Blackstar smiled at him.

"There you are. Today, I want to train with you. Come." He meowed roughly, flicking his tail tip and leading the way out of camp from where he came. Duskpaw looked back over to Tawnypaw, shaking his head of thoughts and quickly following his mentor, scampering to catch up with his wide strides.

"The art of Evasion is a tactic that Boneclan cats need to know to survive. When strength is outmatched, one must have a backup plan." Blackstar mewed, peering over his shoulder to watch and make sure Duskpaw was paying attention and keeping up. Duskpaw quickly walked behind Blackstar, weaving through grass just as Blackstar did. Eventually, the pair came upon a sandy clearing several tail-lengths away from camp. A large, spindly cottonwood tree was on the edge, and the clearing surrounded by high mounds of grass and bramble bushes. Blackstar walked into the middle of the clearing, taking in a deep breath of air and turning around to face Duskpaw.

"This is where we will come to train, and where all apprentices have been trained. I myself had once been trained on these very sands." Blackstar mewed, pawing at the soft pale sand beneath their paws. Blackstar looked to Duskpaw, and the look in his eyes changed in an instant, and Duskpaw was rushed upon, Blackstar raising a paw as if to strike him. Duskpaw immediately panicked, jumping away based upon instincts, just missing the hard slap of Blackstar's paw. Blackstar didn't stop here though; he continued coming at Duskpaw, swiping near him but never close enough to actually hit. Duskpaw didn't know though, he was just dodging based upon his instincts. Blackstar began to amp it up though, and while Duskpaw was trying to evade a strike, Blackstar used another paw to sweep underneath Duskpaw's legs, knocking him off of his feet and causing Duskpaw to hit the ground. Blackstar walked up to him and stood over Duskpaw, staring at him with unadulterated ferocity. Duskpaw stayed absolutely still, almost paralyzed by the look in Blackstar's eyes. Blackstar smiled and backed off, letting Duskpaw get up and regain his footing.

"Not bad for your first time. Your enemy has multiple paws. Remember that." He mewed, standing at the other side of the clearing and staring down Duskpaw. "I'm going to come at you. If I get you on the ground, you'll be hit on the muzzle." He mewed sternly. Duskpaw could see the seasoned warriors muscles rippling under that dark, dingy pelt of his, and Duskpaw was worried if he could even stand up to Blackstar at all. He was taking a guess that Blackstar was trying to gauge how much skill he had just based on instincts.

Blackstar came at Duskpaw again, just as fast as the last attack, and Duskpaw decided to get away from Blackstar before he even began raising his paws. Blackstar chased after, not letting Duskpaw get around him to escape. Duskpaw continued scrambling back and forth, trying to dodge Blackstar's paw swipes to his legs. Eventually, Blackstar was faster though, and Duskpaw felt his legs be kicked out from underneath him, causing him to fall into the dirt and for Blackstar to pin him down. Blackstar rose a paw, taking it down and striking Duskpaw hard on the face with a thump. His claws were sheathed, but the power in the swipe didn't feel good for Duskpaw, who emitted a small sound from the strike. Blackstar backed off of him and let Duskpaw get up, backing up and over to the other side of the sandy arena. Duskpaw shook the sand off of his pelt, and he braced himself for Blackstar to come again. Blackstar approached, this time not going for a frontal attack, but trying to go around from the back of Duskpaw. Duskpaw continued turning around, trying to not let Blackstar gain access to his blind backside, but the larger cat was much faster, and managed to slam a paw against Duskpaw's flank, throwing him off balance and into the sand. Blackstar pinned Duskpaw down quickly again, delivering another hard slap on Duskpaw's face. Duskpaw whimpered again with the strike, and Blackstar visibly frowned at this.

"Stop whining. Do better if you don't want to get hit." Blackstar hissed, his tail lashing about as he walked away, preparing to come at him once more.

"I just started…" Duskpaw hissed under his breath, frustration bubbling. Blackstar turned quickly and squinted at Duskpaw, his face twisting into a snarl.

"Don't talk back to me!" Blackstar snarled, stepping up to Duskpaw and unsheathing his claws. Blackstar raised his claws in the air, as if he was going to strike Duskpaw, but he stopped himself before striking the apprentice. Duskpaw was low to the ground, bracing himself, and staring at Blackstar as if he was a fox about to eat him up. Blackstar let out a huff, and blinked his eyes, looking down at Duskpaw and frowning. "To be a strong Boneclan warrior, you must learn like a Boneclan warrior, through pain and endurance, training and practice, learning and fighting! That is what Boneclan is" He mewed, taking a paw and pointing Duskpaw's amber eyes to look into his own yellow orbs. "You must understand. This is the order of things. Everyone follows, and everyone is safe and fed." He moved his paw away and sat down. "That's enough battle training. Let's practice hunting." He padded over to the exit of the clearing, and Duskpaw nodded and followed, his tail drooping and his face stinging from the hits he endured in the sparring. His mind echoed his mentors words, "_To be a strong Boneclan warrior, you must learn like a Boneclan warrior, through pain and endurance, training and practice, learning and fighting! That is what Boneclan is._" He flexed his claws and churned up the dirt as he walked behind Blackstar, his face hardening. He had to grow up now.

They approached the meadows that created a majority of the Boneclan meadows, the fields sparse with large grassy mounds dotting the area. Small flowers dotted the mounds, and the wind blew the tall grass near the top. Blackstar walked in between two of the mounds, sniffing the air and letting his tail balance parallel to his body.

"Stay low to the ground and watch me. I'm going to demonstrate a hunting crouch." Blackstar mewed, gesturing with his tail tip for Duskpaw to lower himself to the ground. Duskpaw followed Blackstar's order, and he crouched low to the ground, slinking behind Blackstar as they weaved around the mounds of grass. Blackstar parted his maw slightly, tasting the air for the scent of prey. He continued for awhile, before his ears perked up, catching the sound of a creature. Blackstar dropped low to the ground, letting his stomach fur just barely brush against the dirt beneath them. His tail stayed parallel to his spine, taking care to not touch any brush or debris on the ground. He followed the scent and subtle sounds the creature emitted, and Duskpaw strained his hearing to see if he, too, could hear whatever Blackstar was picking up on. The only thing that Duskpaw could hear was the sound of grass moving in the wind. He then opened up his maw and took in the crisp air, and a musky, earthy scent that wasn't there before. Blackstar suddenly stopped, and Duskpaw just managed to pay attention enough to stop before bumping into Blackstar's hind leg. Blackstar whispered softly "Stay here.", before slowly creeping towards the base of a shrub. Duskpaw was able to briefly spot the small brown form of a jumping mouse, and he crouched down and watched as Blackstar creeped up onto the unsuspecting prey. Blackstar tensed his muscles, and he sprang forward, closing the rest of the distance between him and the mouse. A small squeak was uttered from the creature before Blackstar's jaws crunched around its spine and quickly dispatched the mouse. He turned around and dropped it, looking to Duskpaw.

"From where you sit, I want you to try and stalk to this prey. You must keep yourself low to the ground, but you can't have your belly fur tracking grass, dirt, or sticks. Your pawsteps also must be light, avoiding debris on the ground so you will make as little noise as possible." He mewed, demonstrating once again, like he did when he creeped up onto the jumping mouse. "Try to take note of the wind direction. Where is it blowing?"

"Um, Its blowing towards me." Duskpaw mewed, feeling the breeze brushing against the fur in his ears.

"Yes. This is optimal, as your scent won't be blowing with the wind up to your prey. You want the wind blowing the scent of the prey towards you, so that the prey cannot detect you before you even get the chance to get close." Blackstar mewed, sitting down and curling his unkempt tail around his paws. "Now, stalk."

Duskpaw got low to the ground, trying to make sure that his belly fur didn't touch the sandy ground beneath him, and he took careful, steady steps towards the mouse by Blackstar's feet. He noticed his tail on the ground, and he lifted it up so that it wasn't touching the ground.

"Keep your tail parallel to your spine. If your tail is sticking out, the prey can and will spot you." Blackstar corrected, blinking his amber eyes and making Duskpaw feel like he was being put under a microscope. Duskpaw continued towards the mouse, taking care to align his tail with his spine and not let it poke out. He continued creeping forward until his nose touched to the mouse, and he looked up to Blackstar eagerly. Did he do well?

"That was adequate." Blackstar remarked, his tail tip flicking around. "Pick up that mouse, we'll bring it back to camp." He commanded, and Duskpaw's ears drooped slightly. Adequate. _I guess that's better than nothing _He thought with a sigh. He picked up the mouse in his jaws and followed behind Blackstar again, staying just a little farther back this time.

Duskpaw entered behind Blackstar, sliding down the ramp that led into the canyon camp. Holes were at the bottom of the dirt canyons walls, and these were used as dens. A larger dugout covered with a mossy rock was the medicine cats den, where Thistlebranch would treat injured cats. Near the entrance of camp was a tree stump with a hollowed out base, probably eaten away by termites. This is where Blackstar's den was, and where he stood to address the clan and have meetings. The camp was quaint, but it was easy to protect, being surrounded by bramble bushes and large grassy mounds. The holes made for warm dens to battle the cold weather that usually besieged them in winter, and could be covered with a weaving of sticks so that snow and rain could be kept out. A pile of freshkill lays under a tree root by the tree stump, and Duskpaw walked over to drop the small body of the jumping mouse into it. There were a couple other mice and a bird in the pile, but the meagerness of it was to be expected, since Leaf-bare was just around the corner. Duskpaw looked over to the entrance again and spotted Whitepaw and her mentor, Frostblaze, a sturdy light grey molly with a dark stripe going down her back. Duskpaw perked up slightly at the sight of his sister, and he sat down as she scampered over to him.

"Hey, Duskpaw!" Whitepaw mewed in greeting, rubbing her face affectionately against Duskpaw's flank.

"Hey. You just get back from something too?"

"Yeah, Frostblaze took me out to teach me how to hunt! Its kind hard to keep yourself steady." Whitepaw mewed, crouching down and trying to keep her tail balanced in the air. She couldn't help but wag her tail around in excitement though.

"Yeah, Blackstar trained with me some and taught me how to do the hunting crouch. I didn't get to try to catch anything, though." He sighed, sitting down and licking his chest. "But Blackstar tried to teach me some evasion moves, but he kind just rushed at me and made me panic. I didn't feel like I really _learned_. It was kinda like he was testing me." He mewed, flattening his ears to his head. "Its… weird being around him after…" Duskpaw gulped, his tail lashing behind him.

"F-Frostblaze let me practice trying to catch leaves. That was fun." Whitepaw mewed, trying to change to conversation. "Maybe you can try to practice on some? There's plenty from Leaf-fallen trees!" She stretched a paw over to a pile of them and flicked the pile so the leaves fluttered over towards Duskpaw.

"Yeah, sure." Duskpaw mewed. He crouched down and stalked over towards a leaf that was around a couple tail-lengths away. He stayed still and wiggled a bit to get hits legs firmly on the ground, and sprung with his hind legs up to pounce on the leaf. He just barely caught the tip of the leaf, and raked his claws into it, easily puncturing it his claws. "Got it!" He exclaimed, and Whitepaw crouched down, looking like she was about to pounce on another leaf like Duskpaw had. She had a mischievous look on her face, however, and she ran over to Duskpaw and pounced on him, but Duskpaw predicted this and was ready. He flipped over onto his back and caught Whitepaw, grappling with her and kicking up some dust. Frostblaze had been sitting on the sidelines and watching, an amused look on her face. Playing was a good way for cats to hone their skills in a way they'll remember, and she fondly remembers the days she would play-fight with Frogleap. Now, though, she had responsibilities, and couldn't be care-free like the apprentices, the only thing on their mind absorbing skills and knowledge and practicing. Whitepaw playfully kicked into Duskpaws belly, breaking apart their grapple. She crouched down and smiled, using a paw to mock-swat the air as Duskpaw stood on his hind legs and batted at Whitepaw's black tipped ears. She jumped up and tackled Duskpaw by grabbing around his midsection, and they both fell to the ground giggling.

Duskpaw stopped his giggling and looked up to spot two other apprentices walking towards them. One was a smaller, tortie molly with brown eyes and white belly fur and paws. The other was a bit larger, fluffier tom with brown fur and green eyes. Whitepaw noticed them approaching too, and she got off the ground and blinked her eyes at them.

"Hey, can we play too?" The tom that Duskpaw now recognizes as Bushpaw mews, sitting down and cocking his head slightly.

"Yeah sure, you okay with that too, Duskpaw?"

"Yeah, sure." Duskpaw mews, sitting up and shaking out his thick pelt. "Uh, hi."

"Hello!" The small molly, named Tawnypaw, mews, her brown eyes looking brightly at Duskpaw. "Are you guys pouncing on leaves or wrestling?"

"We were practicing, but Whitepaw decided to pounce on me instead of a leaf." Duskpaw chuckled, playfully shoving shoulders with Whitepaw to emphasize he was talking about her.

Bushpaw smirked and crouched down, his hind legs tensing up. "I'll avenge you, Duskpaw!" He declared, jumping up and tackling Whitepaw.

"Sneak attack!" Tawnypaw mewed, jumping over and tackling Duskpaw to the ground. Duskpaw let out a little oof and grappled with Tawnypaw, smirking and kicking her with his hind legs. Duskpaw got both of his legs under Tawnypaw and was able to push her off, sending her flying a little ways. She landed on her feet and dashed back towards Duskpaw, raising a paw and batting the side of his ear. Duskpaw turned his head and gently grabbed Tawnpaw's paw with his teeth, yanking her off balance and sending them rolling into the dirt again. When they stopped, Tawnypaw was on top of Duskpaw, smiling and laughing. Duskpaw felt his heart race slightly at seeing her smile, and he couldn't help but laugh along.

Frostblaze padded over to where the four apprentices lay wrestling, and she giggles to herself a little before clearing her throat and mewing, "Alright, Whitepaw, Rotfoot wants us to take the evening hunting patrol. I'm sorry, but you'll have to cut your game short. Duties are duties." she was met with some groaning from Whitepaw, and Bushpaw got off of Whitepaw.

"Oh! Can me and Kinkfur come too? I've been bored all day!" He mews enthusiastically, looking to Frostblaze with pleading eyes.

"If that's alright with Kinkfur, of course, Bushpaw." Frostblaze mewed, smiling at the eager apprentice. Bushpaw let out a squeal of approval and dashed off to find his mentor. Another warrior, sandy in color with a darker marbling to his pelt and named Berrybreeze, walked over to where Tawnypaw and Duskpaw sit next to each other.

"I just was asked by Blackstar to take my apprentice and his on the evening border patrol; it seems you two are already together, so why don't you two grab something to eat before we go?" Berrybreeze mewed, his voice sweet and deep as he talked.

"Aw, alright." Tawnypaw mewed, looking over to Duskpaw. "Let's go eat!" She got up and trotted over to the fresh-kill pile, hooking a small vole with her claw and pulling out from beneath the tree root. Duskpaw looked under there and grabbed the small chickadee near the back of the pile. Tawnypaw jumped onto a small dirt ledge on the side wall of the canyon, and Duskpaw sat beneath it, and began plucking the soft feathers off of the chickadee's body. Tawnypaw looked down and flicked her tail tip curiously. As Duskpaw was just about to take a bite, Tawnypaw mews again, "So, uh, Blackstars your mentor now, right?"

Duskpaw sighed. "Yes. He's my mentor now."

"Well… how's that?"

"Awkward. Strange. I have to be friendly with the cat who killed my dad, I don't know how im supposed to feel." Duskpaw grunts, taking a bite into his chickadee and tearing a morsel off. Tawnypaw stayed quiet and began crunching on the head of the vole she was eating, still throwing curious glances at Duskpaw.

"Sorry…" Tawnypaw mumbled through a mouthful of vole, feeling conscious of the fact that she brought up a touchy subject.

"No reason to be." Duskpaw meowed, chewing on the last little bit of his chickadee. Tawnypaw thought for a moment and began finishing up her vole, then jumping down besides Duskpaw.

"Well… Have you been on a patrol yet? I think we're gonna patrol the borders, maybe we will see some Soulclan cats!" Tawnypaw mewed, eager to change subjects and excited at the prospect of seeing the other clan.

"Psh, I sure hope we don't, those guys are crazy." Duskpaw snorted, licking his paw and swiping it across his muzzle to wipe off blood.

"Yeah, But I mean, Aren't you curious?" Tawnypaw asks, cocking her head slightly and sitting down. "Like, I wonder what makes them tick. I get they wanna be perfect or whatever, but what does it even mean to be 'perfect'? I don't get it."

"Maybe they just wanna be the best warriors they can be? I don't know, but I think Blackstar made it clear we don't like them for a reason." Duskpaw meowed, flattening his ears. "My mom told me about the trial they make their apprentices go through. They have to cross the Raging River on their own, and stay in a cave to take a vigil through the night. That's pretty crazy, if you ask me." Duskpaw scoffed.

"Are we really any better…?" Tawnypaw mewed, looking curiously to Duskpaw. Duskpaw considered this for a moment, and shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, we are in Boneclan and our code is to be loyal. I don't care about Soulclan." Duskpaw stated, looking to Tawnypaw firmly. He wasn't entirely sure if he believed his own words though, taking into consideration that it's a tradition for their leader to fight to the death with someone who wants to take over. Before Tawnypaw could get out any other words, Berrybreeze padded over and looked over them.

"Y'all finished with your meals?" Berrybreeze mews, sitting down and squinting at the two apprentices with his yellow-orange eyes. "Sun is gonna set soon, don't wanna be out there in the dark."

"Yup!" Tawnypaw replied, eyes wide with excitement.

"Mhm." Duskpaw mews, standing up and shaking out his fur.

"Alright. We'll be walking the borders. Stay near me and if you see anything, speak up." Berrybreeze meows, standing up and padding over to the entrance, jumping up quickly and dashing up the ramp out of camp. Tawnypaw followed in suit, and Duskpaw did so as well, following behind them at a trot.


	4. Chapter two

CHAPTER 2

'_Clan Comes First'_

Duskpaw walks behind Berrybreeze at a trot, Tawnypaw walking at a similar pace besides him. He looked around at the surrounding grassy mounds, his paws treading across the sandy soil that accompanied their territory. As they progressed towards the border, the scent of Soulclan grew stronger, and Duskpaws face wrinkled in disgust. He looked over to Tawnypaw and saw a similar expression on her face, and when they made eye contact they chuckled at the shared disgust.

"Ugh, how do Soulclan stand their own stench?" Tawnypaw huffed, speeding up catch up to Berrybreeze. "Are they all without noses?" She giggled.

"They probably don't think they smell bad. We probably smell bad to them." Berrybreeze mewed, looking over to his apprentice. "Don't worry about Soulclan, thats some grown cat stuff."

"We're gonna be grown eventually!" Tawnypaw argued, flicking her tail tip.

"Well, ya ain't grown now, so hush up before you get a badger to find us." Berrybreeze chastised, stopping as they came upon the border. He glanced around over it, observing Soulclan's misty moors. Duskpaw came over next to them and looked over as well, the mist thick and obscuring most of anything visible beyond the unseen scent border. He felt a chill go down his back, like he was looking at something he wasn't supposed to. The sound of a running river was muffled in the background, and a frog quietly called. Berrybreeze broke the look he had and stood over the border to mark it, then walking along. Duskpaw and Tawnypaw followed, rubbing their cheeks on the grass of the border and any clumps of coastal shrubs they came upon. As they continued down, the sun started to set, causing the sky to turn a bright orange and yellow color. Dusk was coming upon the territories. Duskpaw looked up and noticed clouds drifting on by, slowly, and peacefully. He almost envied them, just going with the flow, not having to think or do anything other than to exist. As he was staring at the sky, he ran into the back of Berrybreeze's haunch as he suddenly paused. The faint sound of movement from across the border made Duskpaw's hair stand on end, and he looked down and across to barely see the movements of cats moving in the mist, looking like nothing but streaks in the air.

"It's a Soulclan patrol. Stand a bit behind me, younging's." Berrybreeze mewed softly, flicking his tail to gesture for them to take steps back. Duskpaw and Tawnypaw obeyed, backing up just behind Berrybreeze and training their eyes on the mist. Berrybreeze's fur stuck up, his back muscles twitching with agitation. You could see them rippling under his golden marbled pelt, and his eyes changing from their regular happy demeanor to one with ferocity. A pair of eyes gleamed at them from the mist, and a long legged cat with sleek, white fur with gray patches. She walked out of the cover of the mist, and sat a couple tail-lengths from the invisible scent border. Breezepelt let his pelt rest a little, and he lowered his tail, which was erect with agitation. Another molly came out of the mist, one with pointed features and short, glimmering white fur, and brilliant aqua eyes. The two mollies sat next to each other, and a small face was peering from behind white molly with grey spots. Berrybreeze sat down as well, curling his fluffy tail around his paws.

"Hello, Boneclan." The all white molly coos, fluttering her eyes innocently.

"Streamsplash. Spottedsnow. Glad to see you're doing well." Berrybreeze mewed with a blink of his eyes. Duskpaw and Tawnypaw looked over to the cats with curiosity gimmering in their eyes, and Berrybreeze looked sharply at the two she-cats. "Do you need something from us, or are you just gonna stare at me all day? Sorry, but I don't play for the other clan." Berrybreeze taunted, snickering and lashing his tail. Spottedsnow, the all white molly, bristled her fur in agitation.

"Like we'd stoop as low to be with vermin like you. You're all just as good as foxes." Spottedsnow growls, standing up and lashing her tail about. Streamsplash gets up as well, and looks to Spottedsnow.

"Don't give them what they want, Spottedsnow. You know better." She mewed calmly, then making direct eye contact with Berrybreeze. "We want nothing with you, we are just minding our business on our own territory. Come on." Streamsplash flicked her tail and walked to the left of the patrol, Spottedsnow following her after throwing a final glare towards the Boneclan patrol. The little brown Soulclan apprentice stayed where he was, gazing across to their border and looking at Duskpaw and Tawnypaw. Tawnypaw rose a paw and gave a little wave, and Duskpaw looked suspiciously at him, and the Soulclan apprentice just smiled and flicked his tail in greeting.

"Oakpaw! Hurry up!" Streamsplash called, causing Oakpaw to jump and dash away to catch up with the two warriors, their forms fading away into the mist. Berrybreeze gave a big sigh, and turned around to look at the two apprentices.

"As you see, that was Soulclan. Still curious?" Berrybreeze asked, giving the apprentices a skeptical look.

"Uh, kinda, yeah." Tawnypaw mewed, cocking her head slightly.

"Well don't be. They aint nothing but a lick short from choking on their own fur." Berrybreeze chuffed, lashing his tail around and beginning to walk away towards the right of the border. "Come on, we're here to do a job and we are gonna do it." He flicked his tail to motion for the apprentices to follow him, and they did so, rubbing their scent on the bushes and trees that are by the scent line. They soon were approaching what looked to be a large hill on Soulclan's territory, and the sound of the river running and the splashing of the lake lapping the shore growing louder as they approached.

"Are we getting close to the lake? I've always wanted to see the lake!" Tawnypaw exclaims, trotting forward and closer to Berrybreeze.

"Yes, and we should be there just in time to see where it gets its namesake from." Berrybreeze purred, picking up the pace and quickly trotting through the mounds of grass, Tawnypaw and Duskpaw right on his heels. The stretching of grassy mounds came to an end, and opened up to see a sandy shore, with the sun just barely above the lakes horizon. Berrybreeze sat by the edge of where the mounds changed into shore, and looked to Tawnypaw and Duskpaw.

"If you apprentices wanna check out the lake, we can stay for the sunset before making our way back. It's a real piece of eye candy." He mewed, crouching down and gazing across the waters. With a name like Boneclan, you'd not imagine such a gorgeous sight on its territory, but where there is pain and bloodshed, nature finds a way to make the world beautiful again. Tawnypaw's eyes gleamed as she raced up to the shore, slowing as she actually reached the water, apprehensive to get her paws wet. Duskpaw trotted over to follow, stopping a little ways from the shore, wrinkling his nose at the thought of wet fur.

"I'm not getting my paws wet." He stated, sitting down and curling his fluffy tail around his paws. He looked over the water, his eyes reflecting the beautiful rainbow of colors the sunset painted across the sky, and small puffy white clouds rolling along peacefully. Duskpaw was entranced by the sight, and was only brought out of it when Tawnypaw directed a splash of water at him, getting his fur slightly wet.

"Hey!" Duskpaw retorted, to which Tawnypaw used her paw to splash more water at Duskpaw, causing him to run for cover. She stuck her tongue out playfully and scampered down the shore with Duskpaw, splashing water all the while. Her fur was dark and sleek, and the water caught the colors of the sky on it, causing it to seem like Tawnypaw was running in the sunset. Duskpaw felt his face flush, and he kept staring at her as she ran alongside them, him on the shore and her running in the water. He was so distracted that he lost his paws, and he fell down on his face in the sand. He got up and shook off his fur, feeling embarrassed, just to be greeted by Tawnypaw walking up to him and laughing. He couldn't help but laugh with her, enjoying the moment. Berrybreeze walked over to them and smiled, and Tawnypaw shook her fur out to try and release a majority of the water, and Duskpaw did the same. They were still laughing, and Berrybreeze couldn't help but give a chuckle himself. The sun began dipping under the horizon, streaking the sky with purples and pinks, and the dark of night settling in instead of the bright blue sky. The three watched it, staying silent, appreciating the moment and the sounds of water lapping ashore. It was a peaceful scene. Tawnypaw sat next to Duskpaw, and as she was admiring the sight she found herself leaning onto Duskpaw's shoulder. Duskpaw felt his ears get hot when he noticed, and he gulped and kept looking to the sunset.

Berrybreeze got up as the sunset dipped fully out of sight below the horizon, and he stretched his paws, kneading them into the sand as he yawned.

"Alright youngins, it's just about time for Silverpelt to come out, so lets be on our way back home." Berrybreeze mewed, shaking his pelt free of any sand still clinging onto him. Tawnypaw got up, stretching her legs in a similar way, and she smiled at Duskpaw when he shook his pelt out.

"The sunset was so pretty! I never knew something so amazing was on our territory!" Tawnypaw exclaimed, prancing around happily and jumping from the tops of grass mounds. She didn't seem to be tired, despite the onset of darkness. Duskpaw nodded in agreement, walking behind Berrybreeze as he led them back to camp.

"Are there any other cool spots in our territory, Berrybreeze?" Duskpaw mewed, his ears perked with curiosity.

"Well, we got the Basking rocks that we passed by that is parallel to that Cave o' Silence them Soulclanners got. We also have the Battle Clearing, but y'all have been there already. Then there's the climbing tree, which I'm also sure you've seen. Otherwise, we just got lots'a meadows and grass and dirt." He mews, still steadily trotting towards camp. "It ain't the prettiest but it works for us." Duskpaw nodded as he spoke, the smell of home growing stronger as they kept going. Tawnypaw eventually jumped down from the grass mounds and walked alongside Duskpaw, looking to him.

"The lake is really pretty, huh?" She mewed, slowing down her pace a bit as she began talking.

"Y-yeah, Its nice. I didn't know we had any nice things in our territory." Duskpaw mewed, looking up to the sky as the stars began poking their light through the dark sky. "I thought it was all just grass and sticks." He chuffed jokingly.

"Haha, yeah. Its nice, knowing not everything is bad out there. Atleast, in our territory." Tawnypaw mewed, smiling as they approached the entrance to camp. Duskpaw followed behind her as she slipped down the ramp into the canyon camp. Blackstar was laying inside his tree stump den, his yellow eyes watching the camp carefully, his pupils slits. Berrybreeze came in behind him, walking over to Blackstar.

"Blackstar; We ran into another Soulclan patrol across the border, but otherwise we remarked the border and saw nothing unusual, sir." Berrybreeze mewed, sitting down and at attention.

"Good." Blackstar meowed, glancing over to Duskpaw and Tawnypaw. "How was Duskpaw with your apprentice, Berrybreeze?" Blackstar inquired, his ears twitching as his interest peaked.

"They seem to get along quite well, sir. Like two peas in a pod." He purred, curling his tail around his paws.

"I see. Dismissed."

"Goodnight, sir." Berrybreeze mewed with a dip of his head, padding over towards the fresh kill pile. Duskpaw glanced over to where Blackstar lay, his eyes nervous, and Tawnypaw tapped his shoulder with her tail tip, taking him out of his trance.

"Bushpaw and Whitepaw seem to be back from their patrol too." She observed, padding over to where the two apprentices sit chatting by the apprentice's den. Duskpaw followed in suit, glancing back to Blackstar and seeing something in his gaze that made a chill go down his spine. He was almost angry looking, but why?

"Duskpaw! How was your patrol? It was your first one, right?" Whitepaw exclaimed, trotting up to meet her brother and purring. "What kinda stuff did you see?"

"Oh- well, we saw these creepy Soulclan cats." Duskpaw started, sitting down and licking his chest fur.

"They weren't all that creepy. I thought they were kinda pretty!" Tawnypaw mewed, glaring at Duskpaw before smiling again. "That little apprentice didn't seem all bad-"

"Another apprentice?" Whitepaw chirped, her eyes widening. "Momma told me all the apprentices in Soulclan had to cross the Roaring River and stay in a cave all night! I thought they would freeze to death."

"Well this one was very much alive." Duskpaw snorted, rolling his eyes. "I don't get why you guys are all so interested in Soulclan, they don't matter as far as I'm concerned."

"It's good to be educated about the enemy, at least, Duskpaw." Bushpaw chimed in, looking slyly to Duskpaw.

"I guess, but calling them pretty isn't exactly preparing to fight or anything." Duskpaw mewed, throwing a sly look back to Tawnypaw.

"Oh, you're just mad cause your paws got wet on the patrol!" Tawnypaw teased, shoving Duskpaws shoulder with her own.

"Oh, did you two see the Sunset Lake?!" Whitepaw mewed, standing up and perking her ears.

"Oh yes. Duskpaw was much too scared to play in the water though." Tawnypaw mewed, sticking her tongue out at Duskpaw.

"Hey, it's not natural for cats to swim, alright?" He grumbled, wagging his tail in annoyance.

"Soulclan does it." Whitepaw remarked.

"Soulclan isn't at all natural." Duskpaw huffed, laying down as the sky began turning dark and the stars were peeking out from behind their dark shroud.

"Whatever. Tell me about the lake!" Whitepaw pressed, scooting over closer to Duskpaw. "Pleeeease?"

Duskpaw gave a dramatic sigh and smiled, caving in. "Alright. Well, it was really something to see. It reflected the colors of the sky perfectly, it was like a second sunset! Tawnypaw was running through the water and the colors were splashing all around her, it was so pretty." Duskpaw mewed, retelling what Tawnypaw, Berrybreeze, and him had saw.

"Awww, are you calling Tawnypaw pretty, Duskpaw?" Bushpaw mewed, wiggling his eyebrows.

"W-what? N-no!" Duskpaw stuttered, suddenly flustered.

"You don't think I'm pretty?" Tawnypaw mewed, looking with a hurt expression to Duskpaw.

"W-wait, no- I mean- I think-" Duskpaw kept tripping up on his words, and he eventually decided to just stop talking all together, his embarrassment overwhelming him. The three apprentices giggled together, and Bushpaw touched the tip of his tail to Duskpaws shoulder.

"Hey, no need to be shy buddy." He chuckled.

"Shut up." Duskpaw groaned, covering his ears with his paws.

"Alright alright, enough teasing my poor brother." Whitepaw giggled, laying on her back and looking up to the stars. "If you look up, you can see silverpelt in the sky!"

Duskpaw looked up, and surely enough, the stars of Silverpelt were shining in the sky, full view. He was surprised they could see it, considering Boneclan's worship of the Dark Forest. Maybe Starclan still believed in them, despite everything. Duskpaw glanced over to Tawnypaw and saw the stars reflect in her brown eyes, bringing out all the other colors hidden within her eyes. Duskpaw stared for a while, before he felt something behind him, watching.

He looked behind him to see the large, bulky form of Blackstar standing behind him and his peers, and he nearly jumped out of his pelt. Instead, he gulped, and looked to Blackstar, waiting.

"Duskpaw. Go to sleep, now. I have a special training session for you tomorrow." Blackstar almost cooed, if his hoarse voice was even capable of doing so. "The rest of you, make sure you've ate and go rest as well. Its late." He ordered, glaring at all of them beforeing walking away, back to his den. Duskpaw sighed, as they all collectively did, and meandered over to the apprentices den, Tawnypaw following since she had ate already too. Duskpaw curled up into his nest on the far side, and Tawnypaw goes to hers near the entrance. Duskpaw yawns and stares at the wall of the apprentices den until sleep overtakes him, and he drifts off into unconsciousness.

Duskpaw awoke by being prodded with a paw, and he grunted with annoyance until he saw Berrybreeze.

"Hey champ. Blackstar wants to take you and Tawnypaw for some sparring. Up and at'em." Berrybreeze chuckles, and Duskpaw spots Tawnypaw already roused and up. He sat up and shook out his pelt, licking his chest fur and running his paws over his ears before padding out of the apprentices den. He fluttered his eyes as the piercing light of sunrise hit him, and he blinked to see Blackstar with Berrybreeze sitting by him and Tawnypaw next to Berrybreeze. He trotted up to Blackstar and met his eyes, Blackstar looking cold as usual. He flicked his tail to gesture for the patrol to follow him, padding up the ramp out of camp.

"Today we will be group training. Duskpaw, it will be good to spar with someone your own age." He remarked, glancing back to his apprentice shortly before continuing forward. They reached the sandy training clearing in no time, and Tawnypaw seemed really excited.

"Have you trained before, Tawnypaw?" Duskpaw mewed, his head cocked to the side.

"Oh, well, not yet. I'm really excited though!" She exclaimed happily, running to her mentors side. Duskpaw gulped and stood over by Blackstar, both mentors at the far sides of the clearing.

"Stay here, me and Berrybreeze are going to do a demonstration." Blackstar mewed, touching his tail tip to Duskpaws shoulder and walking towards the middle of the clearing. Berrybreeze did the same, and the two mentors faced each other. Berrybreeze crouched down and pounced towards Blackstar, and Blackstar rolled to the side out of the way of the pounce, avoiding the attack. Berrybreeze then ran over to Blackstar, trying to swat his face but Blackstar moving out of the way so that Berrybreeze's paw flew over, barely hitting the leaders torn up ears. Berrybreeze continued his assault, and Blackstar continued to dodge, and Tawnypaw and Duskpaw watched the two as they moved with intense curiosity and awe. They stopped, Berrybreeze panting a bit and Blackstar still stoic as usual.

"Now, Duskpaw, did you see the roll I used to maneuver away from Berrybreeze's strikes?" Blackstar inquired, to which Duskpaw enthusiastically nodded. "Good. I want you to practice that technique for now." Blackstar ordered, then looking to Berrybreeze, to which he nodded.

"Tawnypaw, I want you to be the attacker in this situation. Come at Duskpaw with sheathed claws, but all the might you have! Keep your feet squared on the ground and throw your blows with your shoulders. You got this!" Berrybreeze mewed, his eyes gleaming happily and his tail tip flicking back and forth with excitement. Tawnypaw nodded, and walked over to the middle, and Berrybreeze walked over to the sidelines. Duskpaw and Blackstar mirrored there movements, and Duskpaw stood in front of Tawnypaw, waiting for an attack.

Tawnypaw crouched down and pounced at Duskpaw suddenly, and Duskpaw immediately dropped his body and threw it to the side to try and roll gracefully like Blackstar had, but instead he rolled onto his side and Tawnypaw was able to easily get another strike in. Duskpaw scrambled to his feet, getting up and bracing for another attack. Tawnypaw tried to strike him with a paw, but he was able to duck and dodge it. Tawnypaw then tried again from the other side, and Duskpaw continued ducking and moving. Blackstar was watching with intent, his eyes trained on the two apprentices. Berrybreeze was cheering for Tawnypaw, saying she was doing well, while Blackstar stayed completely silent, just watching.

"Switch the roles now. Duskpaw, go on the attack. Tawnypaw, dodge." Blackstar meowed, sitting up and curling his tail around his paws, something dark flickering in his gaze. Duskpaw nodded and switched to offense, Pouncing on towards Tawnypaw and her trying to dodge him. It seemed she was having a harder time picking it up, or maybe wasn't taking it as seriously, because she kept rolling to the ground and letting Duskpaw pin her down. Blackstar was grumbling, and Berrybreeze looked nervous.

"Tawnypaw, try to put more power into your roll. Pretend it's an enemy cat." Berrybreeze meowed, his tail swishing behind him. Tawnypaw was distracted by this, and Duskpaw full on tackled her to the ground, chuckling a bit as he did so.

"Duskpaw. Take this more seriously. Attack harder." Blackstar mewed, standing up now, looking over the apprentices. Duskpaw looked to Blackstar and nodded quickly, jumping off of Tawnypaw and taking a couple steps back. Tawnypaw shook out her fur and smirked at Duskpaw, bracing herself. Duskpaw ran over to Tawnypaw and pounced towards her, but Tawnypaw managed to avoid him this time with a successful roll, but Duskpaw was quick to recover and used his paws to trip up Tawnypaw, making her lose her footing and fall on her side. Duskpaw took advantage of this to land an attack, thumping her on the shoulder with his paws. He hesitated to go for the face, knowing it wouldn't feel great, considering Blackstar had done that to him and he didn't like it. Tawnypaw got up and hissed, headbutting Duskpaw in the chest and dashing away. Duskpaw wasn't prepared for this, and he grunted as she headbutted him, but he recovered and came at her again, lashing a paw out and trying to swipe her legs out from underneath her, but she continued to evade, and Duskpaw was just too bulky to catch up to her nimble movements. Tawnypaw kept giggling as she dodged Duskpaw's sloppy attacks, and it almost looked like they were playing a game rather than training.

"Duskpaw! Come here." Blackstar barked suddenly, his tail tip flicking around and his pupils slits. Duskpaw came to a halt, flattening his ears on the top of his head and going over to Blackstar. He stood in front of him and looked up, afraid of what he would say.

"I want you to unsheath your claws. Really make the attacks matter. That apprentice isn't taking this seriously. You know this is serious though, right?" Blackstar mewed, getting closer to Duskpaw and staring intently at him, judging his reactions. "When she runs, grab her by the tail, as hard as you can." Blackstar whispered, then sending Duskpaw back. Berrybreeze looked concerned and anxious, and Tawnypaw was looking at Duskpaw as he walked back curiously.

"Duskpaw, attack! Tawnypaw, dodge." Blackstar ordered, sitting down again and curling his tail around his paws. Duskpaw ran towards Tawnypaw and pounced, and just as he predicted, Tawnypaw rolled away. However, as she did so, when he landed he quickly grabbed Tawnypaw's tail as she was getting back on her feet, grabbing her tail with his jaws. Tawnypaw panicked, and began grappling with Duskpaw, to which Duskpaw raked his claws into Tawnypaw's haunches. Tawnypaw shrieked out in pain, and she tried to pull away, and Duskpaw held tightly onto her tail, and a sickly crunching sound could be heard, and Duskpaw immediately let go upon hearing this. Tawnypaw yowled out in pain, and her backside was bleeding from the claw marks on her haunches, and her tail was crooked half way through. Berrybreeze rushed over to his apprentice, fur spiked on end. He looked over to Duskpaw with rage gleaming in his eyes.

"Why did you use your claws?! That's against the warrior code!" Berrybreeze hissed, causing Duskpaw to shrink back.

"Blackstar told me to!" He squeaked out, crouching down on the ground and looking at Tawnypaw's writing form.

` "Her tail…! Ugh, move!" He growled, picking up Tawnypaw by the scruff and rushing away with the crying apprentice, pushing Duskpaw out of the way. Blackstar padded over to his apprentice, standing next to him.

"Good job. She'll remember this." Blackstar mewed, touching his tail tip to Duskpaws shoulder. "You don't need her. Her feelings aren't as important as making her into the perfect Boneclan warrior." Blackstar told Duskpaw, padding forward and towards the exit of the hollow.

"I didn't want to hurt her!" Duskpaw protested, causing Blackstar to turn around and come back to Duskpaw standing in front of him and towering over the small apprentice.

"It doesn't matter what _you_ want, it matters what is good for _the clan_!" Blackstar growled, unsheathing his claws.

"How is it good for us to hurt each other?!" Duskpaw hissed, standing taller now wrinkling his face up in anger. "I was making a friend! Now she'll hate me!"

Blackstar swiped Duskpaw across the face, one claw scoring deeply into the ridge across his nose and opening his skin up. Duskpaw immediately reeled back and hissed, crouching to the ground defensively.

"Friends bring you down. The clan is what matters, not your friends, not your family, no one! The only thing that matters is becoming strong and overcoming your battles, and those battles might be against your own clanmates; You have to be prepared to sacrifice _everything_!" Blackstar spat, getting in Duskpaws face and bearing his teeth. "Now get up." Blackstar stepped away from Duskpaw, allowing him to stand up. Duskpaw was shaking and clenching his teeth as he stood up. Blackstar was right. Family was the reason he was in pain. Friends are the reason he's being punished right now. He looked up to Blackstar and stayed silent, looking at him in the eyes. "Go to the otherside of the clearing. We aren't done training yet." Blackstar mews, standing and watching as Duskpaw walks over to the other side of the clearing. "I won't stop coming after you until you master the rolling dodge. I don't care if it takes all day." Blackstar mews, squaring his paws on the ground and tensing up in preparation.

"I don't care either." Duskpaw growls, crouching down and bracing for his attack.

"That's the spirit." Blackstar meows with a sly smile, before charging at his apprentice.


	5. Chapter three

CHAPTER 3

'_Outbreak and Heartbreak_'

Duskpaw padded alongside Blackstar, his muscles sore with the ache of training. He has been training from this morning until moonrise, and the strain it did to his young body showed. The wound on his nose was scabbed over and dirty, and his pelt was dusty and matted from the abuse given by Blackstar during training. They were walking the trail back to camp, and Duskpaw lagged slightly behind, looking up to the stars and where Silverpelt shone brightly. He wondered what it was like in Starclan, but quickly dismissed those thoughts, since Boneclan didn't worship Starclan. The scents of camp where growing stronger, and eventually they came upon the camp entrance, Blackstar sliding down the dirt ramp that leads into the canyon which serves as the stronghold for Boneclan. Duskpaw spotted Berrybreeze sitting by the medicine cat den, crouched down with his tail wrapped around his paws. He looked up when Duskpaw entered camp, watching him for awhile, before setting his gaze back onto the ground. Duskpaw looked away and down at his paws, stopping when Blackstar did.

"You can go eat, then rest." Blackstar meowed, turning away and going into his tree stump den, disappearing behind a mossy curtain that grew over the entrance. Duskpaw ducked off to the side of his den, poking under the tree roots and spotting a skinny vole. That will do. Duskpaw took his prey in his maw and gazed over to the medicine cat den, a pain pinging in his heart causing him to look away and pad over towards where the warrior and apprentice dens were. He sat between the two burrows, and crouched down, starting to gnaw on the head of the vole. He gazed across camp, spotting the old, gray form of his grandmother, Larkflight, padding out of the elders den, which consisted of a dense thistle bush that had been hollowed out. She looked… off. She was visibly stumbling, her body seemingly going through tremors. She looked over towards Duskpaw, and he could see foam dripping from the edges of her mouth. Duskpaw's eyes grew wide, and he quickly dropped the vole and scrambled to his paws. He looked over to Berrybreeze, seemingly the only other warrior around, and he trotted over to him.

"Berrybreeze… uhm-"

"Look, kid, i'm sorry for yelling at you." Berrybreeze mewed, cutting off Duskpaw as he spoke. "I should 'ave figured you weren't the one responsible for hurting Tawnypaw, but I was just shocked-"

"Berrybreeze, that's not-"

"No, no. Its okay, youngin. Tawnypaw will be alright. I know Blackstar probably had you go hard on her so she would be taught a lesson or something, but-"

"Larkflight is sick!" Duskpaw finally spat out, his tail lashing. Berrybreeze blinked his eyes and looked over behind Duskpaw, spotting the dark grey form of Larkflight wobbling in the middle of camp.

"Oh, mouse-dung." Berrybreeze cursed, starting to trot over before turning around to Duskpaw. " Get Thistlebranch. It looks serious." He mewed, his sandy-marbled fur twitching with anxiety. Duskpaw nodded and took a deep breath before padding into the warriors cat den, anxious about seeing Tawnypaw after hurting her so. He was scared to even look at her. Regardless, he entered, and the smell of fresh herbs and dust overtook his senses. He spotted the dark pelted form of Tawnypaw, and noticed that there was an obvious bend in her tail that looks unnatural. Did he do that…? He then saw Thistlebranch, her large form sitting besides Tawnypaw, and she turned around when she heard Duskpaw enter.

"Huh? What do you need, something for that cut on your nose, eh?" Thistlebranch mewed, padding over, her golden eyes glistening.

"Huh-? N-no, Larkflight is sick." Duskpaw mewed, noticing Tawnypaw stir in her nest slightly.

"Larkflight? Out of my way." Thistlebranch barked, shoving past Duskpaw and out of the medicine cat den. Tawnypaw lifted her head up and look over to Duskpaw, her face contorting into one of disgust.

"What are you doing here…? I told Berrybreeze I didn't want to see you." Tawnypaw growled, squinting her eyes. She squeaked when she tried to move her tail, a bolt of pain shooting up through her back.

"I… Sorry." Duskpaw murmured, quickly ducking out of the den and spotting Thistlebranch with Larkflight and Berrybreeze.

"Curses…! Berrybreeze, you need to clear my den of patients; get Tawnypaw to the apprentices den to let her rest, Larkflight can't be around her." Thistlebranch ordered, crouching down by Larkflight, whom was now collapsed and breathing harshly. Berrybreeze said nothing and rushed back to the medicine cats den, going past Duskpaw as he slipped in. Duskpaw padded over to where the cats were, and Thistlebranch looked over to him.

"You'll want to get your mother, Duskpaw… Its good you told me about Larkflight." She grumbled, inspecting Larkflights foaming muzzle.

"What's… wrong with her?" Duskpaw mewed, padding a little closer to look at his grandmother.

"Don't get too close. She… i'm afraid she's got rabies." Thistlebranch mewed, looking down with a sorrowful expression. Duskpaw wasn't sure what rabies were, but he could guess that whatever it was, it was seemingly a terminal disease. He trotted over towards the warriors den, poking his head into the hollow and spotting the sleeping form of his mother, Lichenclaw. He padded in, stepping over a sleeping Marshstomp and Frogleap, and prodding his mother gently in the shoulder with a paw.

"Mom… Larkflight is sick." Duskpaw whispered, crouching down to tell his mother as she stirred awake.

"L-larkflight…?" She stuttered, looking up with a dream-like gaze in her eyes to Duskpaw. She got up and padded around the other sleeping warriors, exiting the den with Duskpaw following behind her. She quickly spotted the growing crowd of cats, and stood next to Thistlebranch. The medicine cat spoke some words to her, and Lichenclaw visibly lost her balance, clenching her teeth and squeezing her eyes shut. Duskpaw came over to where his mother crouched down, looking to Larkflight with teary eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Lichenclaw… There's nothing we can do, except put her out of her misery before she hurts someone else." Thistlebranch murmured, touching her tail tip to Lichenclaw's shoulder.

"How…? How did this happen?" Lichenclaw choked out, continuing to stare at her mother's shaking, quivering body.

"I'm not sure. She could have picked it up from an animal, or simply came across it in the breeze. There's no use in worrying over that, now." Thistlebranch mews, blinking. "Let's take her into my den… I can administer the Deathberries then. She'll pass away with a couple moments."

Lichenclaw chokes on another sob, and nods. "I… I want to give her them." She mews quietly. Thistlebranch looks at her for a moment, then nods.

"Of course. Let's take her, then." Thistlebranch gets up and goes to slide Larkflight's rear onto her backside, and Lichenclaw pushes under Larkflight and props her upper half on her back, and they carried Larkflight into the medicine cat den. Duskpaw backed away, seeing Tawnypaw come out of the medicine cats den with Berrybreeze. She glanced over to Larkflight, then Duskpaw, then straight ahead, before ducking into the apprentices den. Berrybreeze padded over to where Duskpaw sat in the middle of camp, looking to him with a sour expression.

"It must be rough if Tawnypaw had to be escorted out of the medicine cat den… Did Thistlebranch say what she had?" Berrybreeze mewed, his tail tip flicking nervously.

"Rabies."

"Oh, no. Oh geez." Berrybreeze mewed, his voice shaking slightly.

"What's rabies?" Duskpaw mews, looking to Berrybreeze with a curious glance. Thistlebranch exited the medicine cat, her ear twitching as she caught Duskpaw's question.

"Rabies is a disease that corrupts the mind as well as the body. It makes you angry and wanting to lash out, attacking anything close to you, including yourself. Your brain eventually shuts down, so your organs do too. Its lethal." Thistlebranch explains, her face turning more somber as she continues. "It's better to die before you end up hurting someone you love." Duskpaw looks down at his paws and thinks over this, his face hardening. So, Larkflight had to die… He wondered how his mother would take it, after losing his father not too long ago. He spotted another patrol returning to camp, one that consisted of Whitepaw, her mentor, Frostblaze, and Frostblaze's brother Stoneclaw. They skid down the ramp into camp and Whitepaw rushed over to Duskpaws side, her tail touching her brothers back in comfort.

"Is everything alright, Duskpaw? I haven't seen you all day." Whitepaw mewed, then gazing over to Berrybreeze and Thistlebranch sitting outside the medicine cat den. "Did something happen?"

"Larkflight has Rabies. She's gonna die. Lichenclaw is with her." Duskpaw mewed, monotone. Whitepaw' eyes grew wide and she sat down, looking to the inside of the medicine cat den.

"Yikes… I mean, Grandma was old, but… How will mom take it?" She mewed, her tail waving around anxiously. Duskpaw didn't respond, and the siblings stayed together, watching the medicine cat den and waiting. Duskpaw looked behind them and saw Blackstar peering outside of his den, watching the scene. A sudden pain-filled yowl permeated the canyon, and Blackstar was roused up. The yowl came from the medicine cats den, and Stoneclaw rushed into the medicine cats den to assist, as well as Berrybreeze and Thistlebranch. Duskpaw and Whitepaw trotted over, Blackstar coming up behind them and pushing them out of the way to look for himself.

"What in the name of the Dark Forest is going on?" Blackstar growled, poking a head into the medicine cat den. Berrybreeze was holding down Larkflight's legs, and Stoneclaw had a grip on Larflight's throat, crushing it and swiftly putting an end to the elders life. Lichenclaw was being tended to by Thistlebranch, a bite wound on her front left ankle obvious and bleeding.

"I shouldn't have left you two alone! Mouse-dung! Blackstar, there you are-" Thistlebranch croaked as she spotted the leader, looking to him. "Larkflight had rabies, we had to put her down. Lichenclaw wanted to do it herself, so we left her to give her deathberries, but… Gosh-darnedit!" Thistlebranch spat, turning back to Lichenclaw and dressing her wound. "You…! How could you let yourself get bit?!" Thistlebranch growled, wrapping spider webs around her ankle angrily. Lichenclaw was sobbing and didn't look at Thistlebranch, her ears flat to her head. Blackstar looked over to where Berrybreeze and Stoneclaw were, commanding them "Bring Larkflight out so the den isn't crowded." before padding out of the den and looking to the apprentices. "You two, go the the apprentices den. It's late." He grumbled, padding over towards the exit of camp. Duskpaw blinked and sighed, looking to the medicine cat den and then going to the apprentices den. Whitepaw followed, her tail dragging on the ground as she thought of her mother. When they entered the den, they saw Tawnypaw by the wall of the den, curled up and sleeping. Duskpaw went over to his den on the opposing side of the cave, and Whitepaw sat down in her nest just a bit away from Duskpaw. Bushpaw was sleeping a little ways from Tawnypaw, and Shadepaw was curled in a ball alone. There was a commotion outside, and Whitepaw figured that the adults were burying Larkflight. She looked over to Duskpaw, who was curled up and trying to sleep, and she poked him with a paw.

"Duskpaw… I don't think I can sleep right now." Whitepaw whispered, to which Duskpaw looked at her with annoyance.

"Try harder." He mewed, laying back down.

"Duskpaw…" Whitepaw mewed, her voice quivering.

"Ugh, fine. How about we go to the roaring river and sit for a bit, get your mind off of whatever you're stuck on, hm?" Duskpaw mewed, sitting up and flicking his ear. "While the adults are busy we can probably sneak by them and back when they're sleeping." He mewed, planning out the best way to go about seeing the river.

"That sounds nice… what if we get caught though? Or a fox finds us? Or a coyote?!" Whitepaw whispered anxiously, her eyes darting around.

"Everything is sleeping right now. We'll be fine. Besides, Blackstar taught me some moves, so I can protect us." Duskpaw mewed, puffing out his chest. Whitepaw rolled her eyes and sighed, nodding her head in agreement.

"Yeah, yeah, sure. Well, let's wait until they all leave, then we can go." Whitepaw mewed, taking careful pawsteps to look by the entrance of the apprentices den. Duskpaw nodded and padded over next to her, looking around to see if any of the other apprentices were stirred awake. They all looked to be sleeping still, so he turned around to look outside with Whitepaw, and as he turned his back, Tawnypaw flicked her ear, indicating she may have picked up more than meets the eye.

After the adults had left camp and were burying Larkflight, Duskpaw with Whitepaw creeped in the shadows of the canyon camp and up the dirt ramp, leaving the canyon camp and padding into the dark mounds of grass. The night sky shone brightly above, and the half-moon was glowing in the sky, lighting up the ground with a blue-white color, and Silverpelt glimmered high in the sky. Duskpaw perked his ears to listen for the sound of the Roaring river, and he decided to climb up onto one of the grassy mounds From this spot, he could see across the meadows and see the river in the distance, between the large hill on Soulclan's territory and where the treeline begins.

"I think I see it. I know where to go, It's just a little north-west of here. Just follow me." Duskpaw mewed, before his sister climbed up the grass mound as well. "Oh. Well, you can just look now."

"Oh, the territory is so pretty! This meadow is big and so pretty in the moonlight. This is the first time I've seen it like this." Whitepaw mewed, mesmerized by the scene. She jumped down from the grass mound and ran forward, towards the river in the distance. Duskpaw jumped after her, and they both ran through the tall grass, watching it catch the light of the moon as it swayed behind them. Duskpaw was grinning, and Whitepaw was giggling as she felt the wind running through her fur, giving her a pleasant chill. It was like all the memories and problems from before melted away under the moonlight. Duskpaw slowed down a bit, still tired from his day of training and his muscles sore, but within a short amount of time they came close to the banks of the Roaring River. Whitepaw slowed down then too, poking her head out from the grass and looking across the sandy banks, her eyes glistening as she saw the river. It was flowing as aggressively as usual, and she padded out onto the soft sand and closer to the water.

"Wow… It's gorgeous!" Whitepaw exclaimed, trotting over to the edge and crouching down to look at the water. A bit of the current splashed up and hit her whiskers, jolting her back but also giving her a little bit of a thrill. "It's really cold!"

"Don't go swimming, it's too cold out right now, you'll get sick." Duskpaw mewed, padding forward and looking across the water. Whitepaw chuckled a bit, and Duskpaw threw her a suspicious glance. "What's so funny?"

"Aww, you _care_ about me Duskpaw! Look at you, looking out for me!" She mewed, playfully shoving Duskpaws shoulder and causing him to grumble.

"Oh shut up." Duskpaw growled, pushing back into the shove and cracking a smile. He looked over the river again and spotted a small brown form on the opposing bank. His playful demeanor changed immediately and he stood up, hackles raised.

"It's another cat! They don't look like a warrior though." Duskpaw whispered urgently, backing up into the grass to try and conceal himself. Soulclan!

"Oh, is it an apprentice? Hey!" Whitepaw mewed across the river, putting her paws in the crisp cool water as she called.

"Whitepaw! Shut up! Soulclan is our enemy, remember?" Duskpaw hissed, crouching down in the tall grass as Whitepaw called across the river. Did Whitepaw have bees in her brain? This was a complete stranger! How could she not be wary?

"Oh, it's just an apprentice. He's coming over, across the rocks!" Whitepaw mewed, pointing her paw in the direction of the apprentice.

"Whitepaw…! Hide!" Duskpaw mewed, dashing out and grabbing Whitepaw by the tail and dragging her back into the grass.

"Hey, cut it out! I think we would know if he was dangerous. He would have made a bigger deal!" Whitepaw hissed, yanking her tail away from her brother. "Stop being ridiculous." She mewed, looking to the right of them and spotting the brown apprentice trotting over to them. Suddenly, Whitepaw had a second guess, and her heartbeat increased as she realized this was a complete stranger from a different clan that they were in bad terms with. What was she thinking calling him over? She was forced to face her doubts as he reached her, his pelt damp with water and colored a chestnut brown, with slightly darker swirls across his flanks and tabby markings on his face. He had kind emerald-green eyes and white toe tips, and Whitepaw felt entranced while looking at him.

"Hello… you guys are Boneclan cats, aren't you?" He mewed, his tail tip twitching. "I saw two of you, did your friend leave?" He cocked his head to the side, blinking and looking around. Whitepaw shook her head and looked over to where Duskpaw was tucked into the grass.

"Duskpaw, come out, he's not bad!" Whitepaw mewed, causing Duskpaw to hesitantly poke his head out.

"Who said I wasn't bad?" The brown apprentice mewed, smirking. Whitepaw looked to him with a worried expression and he chuckled. "I'm just kidding. My name is Oakpaw, you two?" He mewed, sitting down and licking a paw, drawing it over his ear and looking at them expectantly. Duskpaw slinked out of the grass, sitting next to his sister and looking skeptically at Oakpaw. Whitepaw smiled and relaxed, curling her tail around her black paws.

"My name is Whitepaw, and this is my brother Duskpaw. Yes, we're from Boneclan, but we're not crazy murderers or anything!" She mewed, putting on a convincing smile.

"Ha, and Soulclan isnt a self-obsessed clan full of jerks. Spare me the defending, I don't really care about you guys being from Boneclan, as long as you don't mind i'm from Soulclan." Oakpaw mews, looking to Duskpaw and Whitepaw. He seemed to be a moon or two older than Whitepaw and Duskpaw, his figure taller and more muscular. Whitepaw giggled and Duskpaw remained silent, his eyes trained on Oakpaw.

"I guess we won't judge if you don't. How is uhm, the prey running?" She mewed, looking shyly at him.

"It's about as good as one expects prey to run in Leaf-bare. We're all doing the best we can, spite it." Oakpaw mewed, blinking his eyes. "How about you guys?"

"Our prey is running fine. We're as strong as ever." Duskpaw meows in a harsh tone, his tail lashing about with agitation.

"That's good to hear. How has training been for you?" Oakpaw mews, looking at Whitepaw.

"Oh, it's been alright. I did some battle training with my mentor the other day; we were learning how to properly pounce and stuff." She mewed, looking at her paws as she talked and avoiding eye contact.

"Ah, yes. Streamsplash taught me that last moon, how old are you two?" Oakpaw mewed, looking curiously.

"Oh, well, we're just about seven moons I suppose."

"Oh, alright. I'm nine moons old, so I guess i'm a little farther along than you two." Oakpaw mewed, laughing lightly.

"Oh, what kind of stuff have you learned?"

"Well, she taught me ways to trip up opponents in battle-"

"My mentor already taught me that. I guess you aren't that advanced." Duskpaw mumbled, his ears pinning to the back of his head.

"-she also taught me where to put my put my paws to hold someone down, and the weak points on an opponent's body." Oakpaw continued, despite Duskpaw interruption. "The best places to go for are the belly and back of opponents, those are the most open and the belly is soft and easy to wound." Whitepaw listened intently as he explained, her tail tip twitching as she absorbed the information.

"That makes sense. Frostblaze taught me that you need to be downwind of prey, otherwise they'll smell you before they see you and run off." Whitepaw mewed.

"That's very useful to know. I wish I knew that while hunting a vole earlier." Oakpaw mewed jokingly, smiling. Whitepaw chuckled and smiled back, and they looked at each other for awhile and Duskpaw got a bad feeling.

"Uhh, Whitepaw, it's getting late, we should go back…" Duskpaw mewed, looking to Whitepaw.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, probably…" Whitepaw mewed, looking back over to Oakpaw. "Well, uhm, it was nice meeting you. Maybe we'll see eachother again?" She mewed, looking over to Oakpaw anxiously.

"I hope so." Oakpaw mewed, winking his eye. "Get back to your camp safe. Goodnight." He turned around and trotted over to where the rocks the went across the river started, jumping from rock to rock and landing on the other side effortlessly. Whitepaw continued staring for awhile as he left, and Duskpaw was more annoyed than ever.

"You can't be serious." He mewed, standing on the side of the bank and his hackles raised. "He's a Soulclan cat, we can't be all buddy-buddy with them!" Duskpaw growled, his tail lashing about with agitation

"Lighten up, Duskpaw. It's not a big deal to talk to another clan cat." She mewed, looking away from Duskpaw.

"Lighten up?! Do you know what Blackstar might do if he found out?" Duskpaw hissed, squinting his eyes. "I saw the way you were looking at him."

"I wasn't looking at him in any sort of way Duskpaw, you're delusional!" Whitepaw scoffed, pressing her ears to the back of her head. "Blackstar won't find out! He won't, right?" Whitepaw mewed, looking to Duskpaw with a pleading gaze. Duskpaw looked with a baffled expression at his sister.

"Are you asking me to keep this from Blackstar?" He mewed, his hair standing on end.

"Duskpaw… You can't tell Blackstar, like you said, who knows what he'll do to me! To you!" She mewed, panic flashing in her eyes. "Duskpaw, please, you can't!" Duskpaw visibly cringed, stepping away and looking at his paws.

"I won't… but you have to stop talking to him. He's a Soulclan cat and nothing will change that." Duskpaw growled, his eyes looking at her sharply.

"I won't, just… keep this between us, okay?"

"Okay. Fine. Let's go." Duskpaw mewed, turning around and padding into the long grass. Whitepaw looked back across the river once more, remembering this spot by the rocks, trying to memorize what it looked like, because she would have to find it again tomorrow night. She followed behind Duskpaw and they both trotted through the tall grassy mounds of Boneclan's meadow, a chilling breeze sweeping over the blades and through the treetops.

They arrived back in camp as quickly as they left, carefully sliding down the ramp into camp and sneaking into the apprentices den. Whitepaw curled up in her nest and fell asleep immediately; it seemed going out to the river did help her goto bed. Duskpaw found himself having a more difficult time though, his mind clouded with worry for his sister. Duskpaw was sure that he could read how Whitepaw felt for that Soulclan apprentice, and he knew it was going to bring nothing good to the clan. He grumbled to himself and curled into a ball in his mossy nest, burying his nose in his paws and trying to get comfy enough for unconsciousness to take him. Eventually, it did as it always does, and Duskpaw was soon snoring away along with the other four apprentices in the den, but when his eyes opened up again he was back in the world in his nightmare.

Duskpaw was immediately panicky upon seeing the familiar rotting leaf litter beneath his paws, jumping to his feet and his hacks raised. He unsheathed his claws instinctively and looked around, a deep chuckling noise echoing in the distance. A large, muscular tom with dingy white fur and yellow eyes that seemed to stare straight through you, and a fluffy fully black tail and black sock markings on his legs, appeared over on a hill in front of Duskpaw, his presence menacing and making Duskpaw's fur stand on end. The tom jumped down from the hill, towards Duskpaw, landing heavily just a few tail-lengths away from Duskpaw. He grinned, his teeth yellow and worn with age and showing proudly.

"Hello, Duskpaw. I've been looking forward to meeting you." The tom mewed, taking a couple more steps towards the apprentice. "My name is Bonestar. I was the one who got together the first ever Boneclan cats; only the fiercest of rogues and loners who would do anything it took to keep their clan strong and healthy." He meowed in a rumbly, booming voice. He walked around Duskpaw, looking him over and inspecting him.

"The founder…? Then, I must be-"

"Yes, in the Dark Forest. The one and only." Bonestar chuckled, side eyeing him. "This is where those Silverpelt cats banished us to. They think they're better than us… but they're not. We're all the same in the end." He growled, unsheathing his claws. "That's a lesson for later, though. For now, I have something else to teach you…" He meowed, completing a circle around Duskpaw and facing him again, grinning and bearing his teeth. Bonestar suddenly pounced, his muscles rippling as he jumped. For his size, he was incredibly fast, and Duskpaw's paws slipped on the moist moldy floor of the Dark Forest, causing him to fall and for Bonestar to easily pin him down, curling his sharp claws into his shoulders. Duskpaw hissed and writhed around, trying to thrash out of his grip, but only succeeding in digging his claws deeper into his flesh. Bonestar moved one of his paws to Duskpaws throat, and the apprentice soon stopped squirming as the very real threat of claws penetrating his throat was imminent. Blackstar was still bearing his teeth in a twisted grin, his face menacing and ears pointed towards Duskpaw.

"Being deceitful, especially to your clan, for any reason… It will just cause you pain and suffering." He hissed, moving his paw from Duskpaw's throat and to his face, his claw penetrating the scabbed over wound on the ridge of his nose. He cut into it and re-opened it while Duskpaw grimaced and beared the pain, and the Bonestar moved his claw to the other side, dragging it slow and deeply across Duskpaws face and ending just a little further out than the already existing wound. Duskpaw couldn't help but gasp from the pain, and he tried to kick out and struggle, and to his surprise, Bonestar jumped off of him and trotted a couple tail lengths away, looking at Duskpaw with a knowing smirk.

"We'll meet again, Duskpaw. You have the potential to be great." Bonestar announced, a sudden sinkhole appearing below Duskpaw and causing the ground to collapse all around him. He panicked and tried desperately to crawl out, kicking his legs and clawing at the rotting plant matter and wet earth. His efforts were in vain, because he continued to fall, into an endless void of darkness that swallowed him up whole, and then he woke up.

"Duskpaw! Calm down, stop!" Whitepaw yowled to her brother, who was currently flailing his claws around like a rabbit trapped in a warren. Duskpaw's eyes suddenly shot open and he laid on the ground, looking around at everyone. "It's okay Duskpaw! It was just a dream." Whitepaw mewed, sitting next to her brother and licking his shoulder fur. She tasted something irony, and she inspected his shoulders to find small wounds. Did he get those from last night? She looked to Duskpaw's face and saw that another wound was on his face and the one he got from training was opened again.

"Oh, did you accidently cut yourself while freaking out in dreamland…? Come on, you should go to the medicine cats den." Whitepaw mewed, standing up and looking expectantly at Duskpaw. He nodded, and noticed that Tawnypaw was looking inside the entrance of the apprentices den, but her eyes didn't look worried. She quickly ducked her head back when Whitepaw led Duskpaw out of the den, and they both trotted across the canyon to the medicine cat den. Duskpaw could feel eyes burning into his pelt, and he had no doubt that it was Blackstar staring at him. Both the apprentices went in the opening between two large, mossy rocks, that served as the entrance to the medicine cat den. The den was dug out into the canyon in a similar fashion to the other dens, however it was much larger and had a portion of it lower in the ground, and that's where most of the nests were. On the ledge that is level with the canyons floor, there is a single nest and a wall of small cubbies where many assorted herbs were set. Thistlebranch was sitting in the corner, sorting out a pile of herbs in separate piles. She quickly noticed the presence of the two apprentices, and squinted her eyes with suspicion.

"What do you need?" She grumbled, continuing the activity she was already doing.

"Duskpaw has some cuts on his face cause he accidently scratched himself during a dream." Whitepaw mewed, padding closer to Thistlebranch and sitting a couple pawsteps away from her, Duskpaw by her side.

"Can't you go get hurt for some better reason? Sheesh." Thistlebranch grumbled, padding over to her wall of herbs and pawing up a wad of white, stringy material.

"All I can do is cover it for you. Cobwebs are good at stopping the bleeding and keeping infection out, so just come to me every morning for a couple days and i'll put new cobwebs on." She mewed, her voice hoarse and deep. She took the paws covered with cobwebs and used her free paw to carefully stick the cobwebs on Duskpaw's wounds, the cobweb sticking around the wounds.

"There you go. Lichenclaw, I should probably be fixing up your wraps as well." She mewed, to which the apprentices looked behind them and noticed Lichenclaw poking her head into the medicine cats den.

"Oh, alright." Lichenclaw mewed, her gaze looking troubled as she limped over. Her ankle was swollen and wrapped with bloody cobwebs, and she sat next to her kits with shame dripping off her pelt.

"Mom, what happened? Are you okay?" Whitepaw mewed, looking at her mom's ankle with concern. "Who did that to you?"

Lichenclaw looked nervous and tried to conceal her paw, to which Thistlebranch padded over and motioned for her to hand the paw over. Lichenclaw did so after hesitating and sighed, looking to her daughter with eyes just about to tear up.

"Larkflight." Lichenclaw choked out, as Thistlebranch chewed up a couple herbs and spit the pulp onto Lichenclaws wound.

"Larkflight? Why would she do that?" Whitepaw mewed, obviously confused. Duskpaw was trembling besides her, his teeth bared in a grimace.

"She… She was sick, in the mind and the body. She didn't mean to… but something in her brain made her do so." Lichenclaw mewed, blinking the tears away from her eyes.

"Mom… if she bit you…" Duskpaw started, looking to his mom and his eyes brimming with tears. "Does that mean you're gonna die too? Like Larkflight?" Duskpaw cried, suddenly his face turning angry. "How could you let that happen! Why! Why?"

"I couldn't do it! I couldn't kill my mom!" Lichenclaw sobbed, tears freely flowing down her face.

"Why did you _ask_ to then!?" Duskpaw yelled, his claws unsheathing out of anger, and he dug them into the hard packed dirt floor. "Did you want to get bit?!" Lichenclaws eyes got wide and she looked away, her eyes pinned to the back of her head. Duskpaw looked shocked for a minute, then bitterness settled over him. "How could you…?" He whispered, choking on a sob, and his sister sat with bewildered eyes, tears being shed by her as well.

"Momma, what does he mean?" Whitepaw pleaded, taking a pawstep closer to her mom. She looked to Thistlebranch, eyes wide, and she clenched her teeth. "What does he MEAN?!" She demanded, and Thistlebranch sighed.

"The sickness Larkflight had is passed by saliva and blood. Larkflight bit your mom, so now she has Larkflight's sickness." She meowed plainly, her ears flattening on her skull as well. Duskpaw couldn't take it anymore, and he turned around, leaving then den and all the drama. He was going to lose his mom. His only parent. She was going to die and she made it possible. He clenched his teeth and padded to a dirt corner of the camp, clawing at the ground and resting his head against the canyon wall. He cried and freely let the tears flow, trying to keep his sobs quiet.

After awhile, Lichenclaw comes out of the medicine cat den, limping to her sons side. She touches his shoulder with her tail tip, and he shrinks back from her touch, looking at her angrily, then sad, before looking away.

"Duskpaw…" Lichenclaw began, choking on a sob. "I'm sorry…"

"Sorry? That's not gonna change the fact that you're infected now!"

"I- I might be infected, but it's not going to… to activate right away."

"What do you mean?" Duskpaw mewed, his voice quivering.

"Thistlebranch told me it doesn't take effect right away. It stays dormant for awhile before it starts to show symptoms. I could still have a few years left." Lichenclaw mewed, trying to smile, while Duskpaw looked at her bitterly.

"Isn't that worse? You'll never know what day you stumble out of the den like Larkflight, foaming at the mouth and dying." He spat, his tail waving back and forth. "You let her bite you, didn't you?" Duskpaw whispered, her teeth clenched.

"No… Duskpaw, no, I'd-"

"Don't lie to me! Don't!" Duskpaw yowled, turning around with his hackles raised as he hissed at his mother. "Nothing you say is going to change the fact that you're gonna die and leave Whitepaw and I all alone! Just go." Duskpaw sighed softly, looking away from Lichenclaw's teary eyes as she turned away from him and padded into the warriors den. Duskpaw looked over his shoulder, the feeling of eyes burning against his skin undeniable, and spotted no cat other than Tawnypaw staring at him. When he looked, she continued glaring, with Bushpaw next to her looking awkward and worried. _Everyone hates me, don't they?_ Duskpaw thought bitterly, before walking over to where the two apprentices sat.

"What? Why are you staring at me?" Duskpaw grumbled, looking to Tawnypaw and Bushpaw. Tawnypaw snorted and turned her chin up to him, turning around and making him face her backside. Bushpaw looked to Tawnypaw then to Duskpaw, shuffling his paws a bit.

"Tawnypaw doesn't want to talk to you, Duskpaw."

"Why was she staring at me then?" Duskpaw retorted to Bushpaw, his eyes squinted.

"Didn't you hear him, or do you have bees in your brain? Is that why you decided to break the warrior code, because there's a bee making you dumb as a trout?" Tawnypaw hissed, bearing her teeth towards Duskpaw and standing up. "Look what you did to my tail!" She waved over her tail to point out the kink in it, causing it to be angled in a strange direction near the base, making it point inward.

"I didn't… I didn't want to! Blackstar told me to-"

"I don't want to hear your excuses! Look at yourself, look at how you treat your sister and your poor mother!" Tawnypaw hissed, taking a step forward.

"Don't talk about my family like I don't love them!" Duskpaw hissed, unsheathing his claws out of anger and churning the dry dirt beneath them.

"Look, you're already prepared to break it again. You can't control yourself. And I thought… I thought…"

"Well, you thought wrong." Duskpaw growled, looking at the ground. "I don't care if you hate me. I don't need you. I don't want anything to do with you anymore. Just leave me alone." He grimaced, glaring at Tawnypaw as she teared up, her face then twisting into a snarl.

"Is that how you want to live your life, Duskpaw? Alone?" She hissed, then bitterly looking away and to her brother. "I'm going Bushpaw, you can follow me if you want." She spat, walking away from Duskpaw and towards the apprentices den. Duskpaw huffed and turned around as well, sheathing his claws and angrily stomping away and towards Blackstar's den. Bushpaw looked flustered and upset, but he followed his sister with his fur puffed up more than usual. Duskpaw saw Rotfoot sitting on top of Blackstar's den, and he sat beneath him.

"Where's Blackstar?" Duskpaw mewed grumpily, his whiskers twitching.

"You're his apprentice, right? That looked rough." Rotfoot mewed, his ear flicking as he looked down towards Duskpaw, small yet big for his age and with thick, dusty black fur and a white underbelly. He looked very much like their leader. "Right, Well, Blackstar is out on a hunting patrol right now. He should be back by sundown." Rotfoot mewed, dangling his crippled foot off the front edge of the stump. Duskpaw blinked when he saw it, wondering how the deputy could keep his status with an injury like that.

"Doesn't that make clan duties harder?" He mewed, his tail tip twitching back and forth.

"Does what- Oh, oh you mean my little, uh, situation here." He mewed, gesturing up and around with his lame paw.

"I suppose, to some extent. But by the powers of the Dark Forest, I make up for it with my strength, endurance, and battle strategy. You should've seen me and Blackstar back in our prime, running through the meadows after rabbits in the newleaf… Things are different now, though." Rotfoot mewed, looking longingly in the distance. "Eh, We're still as strong as ever and will continue to be no matter what faces us, right, Duskpaw?"

"...Yeah." Duskpaw mewed after a pause, silently contemplating. Different than before, but how? "I'm gonna wait for Blackstar, I guess." He mewed, looking around and spotting no other warriors around besides Thistlebranch sunbathing outside of her den, but he didn't feel like talking to her. Rotfoot shrugged at him and went back to looking over camp, and Duskpaw trotted over to a spot on the side of camp where it was shady to curl up and close his eyes.


End file.
